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The Official Monthly Publication of the Diocese of Lafayette

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012

Volume 28

Number 8

3rd annual Life Awareness Vocation Discernment retreat

by Wynard Boutté LAKE CHARLES The third annual Life Awareness Vocation Discernment Retreat (LAR) sponsored by the Dioceses of Lafayette, Baton Rouge and Lake Charles is scheduled for August 31 – September 2, 2012 at the St. Charles Retreat Center in Moss Bluff, LA. The cost is only $25 for the entire weekend.

The theme selected for the retreat is the scripture passage from John 15:16: “It was not you who choose me, but I who chose you.”

Life Awareness is a vocation program aimed towards single males and females, who are age 17 - 45 and discerning a possible vocation to the priesthood or religious life.

The weekend will feature a keynote address, presentations, and panel discussions that focus on the various Fr. Michael Delcambre stages of dis-

The Life Awareness Vocation Discernment retreat is about providing participants with an opportunity to ask questions and learn about the options available to them regarding religious vocations, but at no time are they pressured to make any commitment to the pursuit of such a calling. Photo submitted by Wynard Boutté

cernment and formation. Participants will have the opportunity to take part in group discussions, Mass, prayer led by priests, sisters, brothers, and seminarians, and share in conversations with a religious. At no point will the participants be pressured to make a decision regarding the pursuit of a vocational calling—this is

a time for them to ask questions and learn about the options available for the possibility of their vocations.

This year’s keynote speaker is Fr. Michael Delcambre, pastor of St. Joseph and St. Rose of Lima Churches in Cecilia. Other speakers will include representatives from religious orders such as

Cardinal DiNardo to visit Lafayette Diocese in September 2013

by Stephanie R. Martin LAFAYETTE Bishop Michael Jarrell is pleased to confirm that arrangements have been made with Cardinal Daniel DiNardo to visit the Lafayette Diocese as part of the local celebration of the Year of Faith (October 2012-November 2013). The Cajundome Convention Center in Lafayette has been booked for Wednesday, September 11, 2013, for a special event featuring Cardinal DiNardo as the guest speaker for the evening.

Further details will be released to the public via the Acadiana Catholic as they become available.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo is the Archbishop of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston, Texas. Born in Ohio in 1949, he later moved

with his family to Pittsburg and graduated there from the Jesuit Bishop’s Latin School. He earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the Catholic University of American in Washington, DC, and studied for the priesthood at St. Paul Seminary. He also received theological degrees from the Pontifical North American College in Rome, where he later taught.

He was ordained to the priesthood for the Pittsburg Diocese in 1977, and for a time worked for the Congregation of Bishops in Rome. He was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City, Iowa, in 1997, and then Coadjutor Bishop of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston in 2004. He became Archbishop in 2006, and

the Nashville Dominican Sisters, Sisters of St. Joseph, Our Lady of Sorrows Sisters, Sacred Heart Brothers, Order of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Order of Franciscans, Daughters of St. Paul, and Marianites of the Holy Cross.

Many other religious communities will also be represented, and several seminarians and diocesan priests will be in attendance.

You should think about participating in a Life Awareness weekend if you are: o Looking for an opportunity to provide service to others, o Wondering if the religious life as a priest, brother or sister might be what you’re looking for, o Or, even if you haven’t reached that point, but you have that quiet, subtle, nagging feeling that it’s something you should know more about.

Life Awareness does several things: o Provides a means of discerning if a vocation exists and continued on page 9

Inside this issue

August calendar. . . . . . . . . . . 5 Bishop Jarrell’s column. . . . 11 Sacred Heart Church’s mission trip to Honduras. . . . . . . . . . 12 Tell the People program schedule for August. . . . . . . . . . . .17 From drug dealer to Catholic Monk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Cardinal Daniel Dinardo

was elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Benedict XVI on November 24, 2007. This made him the first Cardinal Archcontinued on page 8

Unusual collection from Vietnam Veterans Memorial reflects a unique war. . . . . 24-25 Father Lafleur Memorial Mass on September 7. . . . . . . . . . 30 Catholic bible study. . . . . . . 38

Page 4 August 2012

STM Revival

LAFAYETTE Mark your calendars!

The community of St. Thomas More Catholic High School in Lafayette is set to host the STM Revival on Saturday, August 18. The event will be held from 6:00-9:00 p.m. on the grounds of the school, and the entire public is invited to attend this free entry, family friendly revival featuring professional Christian musician Josh Blakesley.

The evening will also include great food, fun jumps, babysitting service for the children, and exhibits of many of Lafayette’s charitable organizations and owner parish youth groups.

A raffle will be held, with a big

screen television to serve as the first prize. Highlight videos will be shown of STM Campus Ministry, and the evening will conclude with praise and worship and Eucharistic Adoration.

Join the STM community in this celebration of faith as they prepare for the start of a new school year.

Come & See on Aug. 18

ST. MARTINVILLE Our Lady of Sorrows Retreat Center in St. Martinville will host a Come & See Day of Recollection on Saturday, August 18, from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. This retreat is for those who would like answers to the questions: • What is religious life?

Acadiana Catholic

To report the abuse of children and young people, please contact Sister Kathleen Farrelly, O.Carm, LCSW Victim Assistance Coordinator for the Diocese of Lafayette 1001 West Pinhook Road, Suite 205 Lafayette, LA (337) 298-2987 • What is a sister?

• What is the difference between a priest and a brother?

• How do religious live?

• How does one become a religious?

• What is a consecrated virgin?

• How do I discern?

Participants will learn more about the consecrated life, including the life and mission of the Community of Jesus Crucified. There is

no cost or registration necessary, and those who attend should bring a brown bag lunch. Mass and the opportunity for confession will be offered.

For additional information, please contact Father Michael Champagne, CJC, at (337) 3946550.

Acadiana Catholic

ACADIANA CATHOLIC (ISSN0888-0247) (USPS507-760) is published monthly for $12 per year by the Southwest Press, 1408 Carmel Drive., Lafayette, LA 70501-5298. Periodical postage paid at Lafayette, LA and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Acadiana Catholic, 1408 Carmel Drive, Lafayette, LA 70501-5298.

Official Monthly Newspaper for the Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana Copyright 2012

Publisher Most Rev. Michael Jarrell, D.D. Bishop of Lafayette

Managing Editor Stephanie R. Martin (337) 261-5512 smartin@diolaf.org Marketing Director Business Mgr / Advertising Director Patrick Breaux (337) 261-5518 or (337) 235-7704 pbreaux@diolaf.org / pat@breaux.com Contributing Writer Kathleen Toups Theological Consultants Msgr. H.A. Larroque, J.C.D. Father Curtis Mallet, J.C.L. Vicars General From the August 1998 edition of the Acadiana Catholic: Taking part in the Mass for the 50th anniversary of St. Martin de Porres Church in Delcambre were (from left) Fathers Brendan Murphy, Alvin Dixon, SVD, Deacon Herbert Bennerfield, Bishop Edward O’Donnell, and Fathers Thomas Voorhies, Francis Theriault, SVD, and Albert McKnight, CSSp.

The Diocese of Lafayette serves eight civil parishes with a population of 304,921 Catholics. Published monthly.

Deadline for news and advertising copy is noon of the 15th day of the month preceding publication. For renewal subscriptions, the name of your church parish and your address label (if available) are requested. The publisher and editor reserve the right to reject, omit or edit any article or letter submitted for publication. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette and/or the Acadiana Catholic cannot be held liable, or in any way responsible for the content of any advertisement printed in this paper.

Diocese of Lafayette Web page: www.diolaf.org

Acadiana Catholic

Prayer for our departed clergy: Fr. Marcel Dion

Fr. Lucien Maheu

Dcn. Elroy DeJean

Msgr. Alexander O. Sigur Fr. Martin Maraist

Dcn. Adam Sonnier

Bishop Gerard L. Frey

Dcn. John S. Guillet

Fr. Paul F. Jansen

Msgr. Hubert Cramers Fr. William Benson Fr. Augustine Blanc Dcn. John James Marin Dcn. Harold Paul Richard Fr. H. Joseph Woerdemann Dcn. Benedict Morello Fr. Adrian W. Van Hal Dcn. Stan Gall

Aug. 05, 1981 Aug. 06, 1977 Aug. 11, 2003 Aug. 13, 1997 Aug. 14, 2008 Aug. 14, 2006 Aug. 16, 2007 Aug. 19, 1986 Aug. 19, 1935

Monday

Sunday

Tuesday

The Holy Father’s Prayer Intentions for August:

Aug. 19, 1935 Aug. 22, 1987 Aug. 23, 1945 Aug. 25, 1995 Aug. 25, 2009 Aug. 27, 1990 Aug. 28, 2006 Aug. 31, 1996 Aug. 31, 1996

1

August 2012 Page 5

August 2012

Wednesday

St. Alphonsus Liguori

Thursday

2

Sts. Eusebius & Peter Julian Eymard

9

St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross

Saturday

Friday

3

First Friday

4

First Saturday

General Intention: That prisoners may be treated with justice and respect for their human dignity Missionary Intention: That young people, called to follow Christ, may be willing to proclaim and bear witness to the Gospel to the ends of the earth

5

18th Sunday of Ordinary Time

6

The Transfiguration of Our Lord

7

Sts. Sixtus II & companions/St. Cajetan

Food for the Journey 11:30 AM-12:45 PM Crowne Plaza Hotel Lafayette

St. Dominic

8

Companions Along the Journey Bereavement Group 6:00-8:00 PM Immaculata Center, Lafayette

Meeting of the King’s Men 7:00 PM Our Lady of Wisdom Church, Lafayette

19th Sunday of Ordinary Time

12

13

Sts. Pontian & Hippolytus

14

St. Maximillian Mary Kolbe

Meeting of the King’s Men 7:00 PM Our Lady of Wisdom Church, Lafayette

15

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

All Diocesan Central Offices Closed in Recognition of the Feast Day

16

St. Stephen of Hungary

10

St. Lawrence

Men of God Retreat Our Lady of Sorrows Retreat Center, St. Martinville

Annual Mass of Petition Marking the Death of Charlene Richard 6:00 PM St. Edward Church, Richard

17

Weekday

St. Clare

11

BSA Workshop & Ministry Fair 8:30-11:30 AM Immaculata Center, Lafayette

18

Blessed Virgin Mary

Come & See Retreat 9:00 AM-3:00 PM Our Lady of Sorrows Retreat Center, St. Martinville STM Revival 6:00-9:00 PM St. Thomas More High School, Lafayette

19

26

20th Sunday of Ordinary Time

21st Sunday of Ordinary Time

Classes Begin for Cycle 6 of VLCFF

20

27

St. Bernard

St. Pius X

21

Meeting of the King’s Men 7:00 PM Our Lady of Wisdom Church, Lafayette

St. Monica

28

St. Augustine

Meeting of the King’s Men 7:00 PM Our Lady of Wisdom Church, Lafayette

The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary

22

Registration Ends for Cycle 6 of VLCFF

29

The Passion of St. John the Baptist

St. Rose of Lima

23

St. Bartholomew

24

25

Sts. Louis & Joseph Calasanz/Blessed Virgin Mary

RCIA Workshop “Rites in the Catechumenate” 9:00-10:30 AM Holy Ghost Church, Opelousas

Weekday

30

Weekday

31

Life Awareness Vocation Discernment Retreat St. Charles Retreat Center, Moss Bluff

Page 6 August 2012

August Ordination anniversaries

Msgr. Charles J. Mallet Aug. 06, 1955 Fr. Keith LaBove Aug. 07, 1981 Fr. Louis Richard Aug. 07, 1981 Dcn. David Guillory Aug. 08, 1988 Fr. Peter Emusa, CSSp Aug. 09, 1997 Dcn. Leon Lejuene Aug. 09, 1980 Dcn. Robert McDonner Aug. 09, 1980 Dcn. John Thibodeaux Aug. 10, 1980 Dcn. Ken Waguespack Aug. 10, 1980 Msgr. Keith DeRouen Aug. 12, 1983 Fr. Lambertus Lein, SVD Aug. 12, 2000 Dcn. Paul Eleazar Aug. 19, 1983 Dcn. Thomas Richard Aug. 20, 1983 Fr. Millard Boyer Aug. 22, 1975 Bishop Sam Jacobs *Aug. 24, 1989 *ordained bishop Dcn. Rodless Leleux Aug. 26, 1988 Dcn. Paul Matte Aug. 26, 1988 Dcn. Louis Lloyd Aug. 27, 1988 Dcn. Cody Miller Aug. 27, 1988 Dcn. Anthony Ozene Aug. 27, 1988 Fr. Paul Onuegbe Aug. 27, 1995 Fr. Stanley Jawa, SVD Aug. 28, 2007 Fr. Dismas Mauk, SVD Aug. 29, 2003

Community of Jesus Crucified retreats

ST. MARTINVILLE The Community of Jesus Crucified encourages everyone to mark their calendars for the following upcoming retreats which will be held at Our Lady of Sorrows Retreat Center in St. Martinville.

Two Men of God retreats have been scheduled for the weekends of August 10-12 and November 30-December 2. Both of these silent retreats will be presented by Father Michael Champagne, CJC, and will focus on helping men to better understand and respond to their baptismal call to holiness in their state of life.

Members of the Community of Jesus Crucified will also conduct a free Women of the Eucharist retreat during the weekend of October 19-21. The retreat will include quiet time to pray, opportunities to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation, Mass, adoration of the Eucharist, and free time to stroll through the retreat center’s beautiful grounds.

Further details and registration information for all retreats may be obtained by contacting Cheryl Moss at (337) 453-2385.

Statement of Bishop Michael Jarrell on the establishment of LGBT studies minor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette: I take this opportunity to remind everyone that Catholic teaching about the issues of homosexuality has been clearly elaborated, most especially in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (nos. 2357-2359) and in the document of the Holy See, On the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1986). Our concern is that the establishment of the LGBT minor gives the appearance of crossing the line from legitimate scientific inquiry into an advocacy of lifestyles discordant with human dignity integrally considered. In a letter to faculty and staff Dr. Joseph Savoie indicated that the program would be “reviewed and evaluated.” The diocese is confident that university officials will address these concerns in a timely manner.

EnCourage ministry in the Lafayette Diocese

LAFAYETTE EnCourage is a Catholic ministry dedicated to the spiritual needs of parents, siblings, children, and other relatives and friends of persons who have same-sex attractions. Standing by the true teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, EnCourage members support one another and their loved ones through discussion, prayer and fellowship. A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 22; those who are interested should contact Father Donovan Labbe (chaplain) by telephone at (985) 395-3616 or email at dlabbe@diolaf.org for further details.

EnCourage is an outreach branch of Courage, a Catholic support group which helps Catholic men and women who experience same-sex attractions to live in accordance with the Church’s pastoral teachings on homosexuality.

To learn more, please visit online at www.CourageRC.net.

The goals of EnCourage are to: • Help members themselves to grow spiritually through developing a vital relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ as authentically taught in our Roman Catholic Tradition.

• Enable members to gain a deeper understanding of the needs, problems and issues experienced by men and women with same-sex attractions.

• Help members establish and maintain a healthy and wholesome relationship with the loved one who experiences same-sex attractions.

• Assist other parents and families not to reject but to reach out with compassion and truth to their loved ones with same-sex feelings and behaviors.

• Witness to our loved ones by our own lives that a happy, wholesome life is to be found in union with Jesus Christ and with His body, the Church.

Catholic Daughters install new officers

St. Bernard Church in Breaux Bridge recently hosted the new installation of officers for the Catholic Daughters of the Americas, Court St. Paul #1434. Father Paul Lafleur celebrated the Mass; those in attendance included Joyce Stein (State Regent), Pay Myers (Second Vice State Regent), Barbara Michael (State Secretary), and Connie Dronette (State Treasurer). A workshop and luncheon was also held following the Mass. Photo submitted by Cindy LeBlanc

Acadiana Catholic

Charlene Richard Mass on Aug. 10

RICHARD The Friends of Charlene Richard would like to remind everyone that the Annual Mass of Petition Marking the Death of Charlene Richard will be held at St. Edward Church in Richard on Friday, August 10. The rosary will be prayed at 4:45 p.m., followed by a presentation from Father Chuck Beierwaltes on the Charlene Richard Mission House and the Sarnelli Hospice Orphanage in northern Thailand. The director of the orphanage, Father Mike Shea, CSsR, will celebrate Mass at 6:00 p.m. Music will be provided by Naomi Broussard.

This year’s Mass will mark the 53rd anniversary of the death of Charlene Richard, a local girl who died of leukemia at age 12.

Since her death, thousands have visited her grave to pray for her intercession, leaving behind written prayers, photos, flowers, and other precious items belonging to the ones for whom they pray.

August birthdays Dcn. Marcel Hebert Aug. 01 Fr. Herbert Bennerfield Aug. 08 Fr. Brad Guillory Aug. 08 Fr. Anthony Ostini, S.J. Aug. 08 Bishop Glen John Provost Aug. 09 Fr. Keenan Brown Aug. 10 Dcn. David Guillory Aug. 10 Dcn. Harris Bergeron Aug. 11 Dcn. Patrick Burke Aug. 13 Fr. Ambrose Akalawu, C.S.Sp. Aug. 15 Dcn. Daniel Besse Aug. 15 Fr. Lawrence Abara Aug. 17 Dcn. Theodule Landry Aug. 17 Fr. Edward Degeyter Aug. 18 Fr. Joshua P. Guillory Aug. 19 Fr. Joseph Alexander Aug. 20 Msgr. Jeff DeBlanc Aug. 20 Fr. Emmanuel Fernandez Aug. 21 Dcn. Steve Paul Simon Aug. 21 Fr. Corey Campeaux Aug. 22 Msgr. H.A. Larroque, V.G. Aug. 22 Msgr. Robert Angelle Aug. 23 Fr. Albert G. Nunez Aug. 25 Fr. Augtinus Seran, S.V.D. Aug. 26 Dcn James Cormier Aug. 28 Fr. Paul Bergeron Aug. 29

Acadiana Catholic

Notre Dame Church hosts Mass of Anointing

August 2012 Page 7

Appointments & changes in the Lafayette Diocese

Center in Lafayette.

Notre Dame Church in St. Martinville, in conjunction with the The Legion of Mary, recently hosted a Mass of Anointing, followed by a reception in the parish hall.

Pictured above are Winola Ned, Anna Marshall, Ruth Clement, Nellie Clement, Father Stanley Jawa (Associate Pastor), Irene Barras (Vice President), Jennifer Robertson (Secretary), Marion Francis (President), Dorothy Francis, and Mazel Sam. Pictured to the left, Father Augustinus Seran, SVD (Pastor), as he anoints Faith James. Photos submitted by Winfield Ledet

LAFAYETTE Bishop Michael Jarrell has released the following appointments and changes for the Lafayette Diocese.

Effective Immediately Rev. Anselm I. Ofodum has joined the Pastoral Care staff at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical

Effective July 1 Rev. Richard Vidrine has been granted a one-year leave of absence.

Rev. Anderson D’Souza, SVD, upon the recommendation of his Superior, Very Rev. James A. Pawlicki, SVD, has departed the Lafayette Diocese.

Rev. Ronfinus Jas, SVD, upon the recommendation of his Superior, Very Rev. James A. Pawlicki, SVD, has been appointed Associate Pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Lafayette.

Rev. James Brady has been appointed Canonical Administrator of St. Peter Parish in Grand Prairie, in addition to his present parochial assignment.

Effective July 2 Rev. Thomas Habetz has been granted a one-year leave of absence.

Rev. Bryce Sibley has been appointed Director of the Aquinas Institute for Theology and Catholic Studies, in addition to his present parochial assignment.

Effective July 31 Rev. Glenn R. Mueller, SJ, has been appointed Associate Pastor at St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Grand Coteau.

Rev. James F. Goeke, SJ, has been appointed Assistant Director of Novices at the Jesuit Novitiate at St. Charles College in Grand Coteau.

Effective August 11 Rev. Daniel White, SJ will depart the Diocese of Lafayette.

Page 8 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Vatican plans for Year of Faith include hymn, Mass, packed calendar

by Cindy Wooden had just approved prayer texts in Catholic News Service Latin and Italian for a special “Mass VATICAN CITY (CNS) for New Evangelization.� The archWith a hymn and a prayer, Italbishop’s office is translating the ian Archbishop Rino Fisichella preLatin text into English, Spanish and sented the Vatican’s initial calendar other languages and hopes to have of events for the Year of Faith, which the congregation’s approval of the begins with a Mass Oct. 11 in St. Petranslations by the time the Year of ter’s Square.

Faith opens, he said.

Archbishop Fisichella, president Pope Benedict called the Year of of the Pontifical Council for PromotFaith to strengthen Catholics who ing New Evangelization, said the go to church, reach out to those who pope has invited as concelebrants have left but still yearn for God in bishops and theologians who, like their lives, offer a response to those the pontiff, served as members or exwho are searching for meaning and perts at the 1962-65 Second Vatican help those who think they do not Council. need God, he said.

The archbishop said he hoped “We are not hiding the fact that about 35 “council fathers� would be there is a crisis of faith, but it is only able to join the presidents of national when one becomes completely aware bishops’ conferences and bishops of a crisis that one can find ways to participating in the remedy it,� the world Synod of archbishop said.

Bishops in concelHe said the pope ebrating the opendecided it was right ing Mass. to mark the 50th During a news anniversary of the conference at the opening of the SecVatican June 21, ond Vatican CounArchbishop Fisicil and the 20th chella unveiled the anniversary of the sheet music for the publication of the official hymn for Catechism of the the Year of Faith, Catholic Church “Credo, Domine, This is the English version of the 2012- with a year dediAdauge Nobis Fi- 2013 Year of Faith logo. The logo fea- cated to encouragdem� (I believe, tures a boat, which is a traditional symbol ing Catholics to the church. Its main mast is the cross Lord, increase our for study, profess and and, with the sails, it forms the initials faith). demonstrate their IHS, the “Christogram� standing for JeHe also distrib- sus, savior of men. Behind the IHS, the faith. uted copies of the sun evokes a eucharistic host. (CNS) The Vatican official Year of Faith logo and prayer launched a website -- www.annuscard, which features a mosaic imfidei.va -- containing information age of Christ from the cathedral in about the Year of Faith and the calCefalu, Italy. The Nicene Creed endar of special events Pope Beneis printed on the back of the cards, dict will celebrate during the year. with the idea that the profession of Many of the Pope’s traditional apfaith would become “a daily prayer, pointments, like the Jan. 25 celebralearned by heart, as it was in the first tion marking the end of the Week of centuries of Christianity,� the archPrayer for Christian Unity and the bishop said.

Feb. 2 prayer with religious, will be Archbishop Fisichella also anincorporated into the Year of Faith. nounced that the Congregation for But other events have been addDivine Worship and the Sacraments ed, including a celebration April 28

during which the pope will confirm a group of young people and meet with others who recently have been or are about to be confirmed in their home countries.

On June 2, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ in most countries, the pope will lead the solemn adoration of the Eucharist and is asking every cathedral and parish to have an hour of silent contemplation before the Blessed Sacrament at exactly the same hour, Archbishop Fisichella said.

Two weeks later, June 16, Pope Benedict will preside over a celebration of the church’s witness to the dignity and value of every human life, the archbishop said. And July 7, 2013, he will meet with seminarians and religious-order novices, who will make a pilgrimage to Rome to demonstrate “the joy of their decision to follow the Lord in serving his

Cardinal DiNardo continued from page 3

bishop of the southern United States, as well as one of approximately 120 Cardinals who will be responsible for selecting the next Pope.

At the present time, Cardinal DiNardo serves on the Board of the National Catholic Partnership for Persons with Disabilities, as well as the Board of Directors of Catholic University.

He is an advisor to the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, a member of the Pontifical Council for Migrants, part of the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism for the United States, and the chair of the US Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities.

Additional diocesan plans for the celebration of the Year of Faith will be announced in the Acadiana Catholic as they develop.

church.�

The cultural events planned, the archbishop said, include a “huge concert� in St. Peter’s Square June 22, 2013. Archbishop Fisichella was not ready to reveal the conductor’s name, but he promised it was someone well-known. And, he said, the concert is likely to involve at least two orchestras and three choirs.

The Year of Faith is scheduled to conclude Nov. 24, 2013.

What is the Year of Faith? from www.usccb.org

At certain times in the history of the Church, popes have called upon the faithful to dedicate themselves to deepening their understanding of a particular aspect of the faith.

In 1967, Pope Paul VI announced a Year of Faith commemorating the 19th centenary of the martyrdom of Sts. Peter and Paul. The 1967 Year of Faith called upon the Church to recall the supreme act of witness by these two saints so that their martyrdom might inspire the present day Church to collectively and individually make a sincere profession of faith.

The upcoming Year of Faith declared by Pope Benedict XVI is a “summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the One Savior of the world� (Porta fidei 6). In other words, the Year of Faith is an opportunity for Catholics to experience a conversion – to turn back to Jesus and enter into a deeper relationship with him. The pope has described this conversion as opening the “door of faith� (see Acts 14:27).

The “door of faith� is opened at one’s baptism, but during this year Catholics are called to open it again, walk through it and rediscover and renew their relationship with Christ and his Church.

For more information, please visit www.usccb.org and enter “Year of Faith Q & A� into the search box located in the upper right corner of the home page.

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Acadiana Catholic

Life Awareness

August 2012 Page 9 Pray for our priests

continued from page 3

Listed below are the priests for whom Catholics are asked to pray daily during the month of August. The calendar is sponsored by the Serra Club of Lafayette.

Participants in the Life Awareness Vocation Discernment retreat will experience one-on-one time to discuss vocational life with priests and religious brothers and sisters.

Photo submitted by Wynard Boutté

how to respond to it. o Explores the rewards and obligations that go along with religious life. o Equips the participants to ultimately make an intelligent decision whether a religious vocation should be considered as they plan their future. o Gives the opportunity to ask questions about diocesan or religious priesthood.

Comments from last year’s participants include: “I’m so glad I came! My faith has been enriched! Thank you!”

“This was an amazing week-

The Lafayette Diocese’s participants in last years retreat included several people who wished to learn more about a possible vocation to the priesthood or religious life. They were supported throughout the weekend by a number of area priests, seminarians, and religious brothers and sisters who were also in attendance. Photo submitted by Wynard Boutté

end! I have never seen so many Religious in one place. Their willingness to talk and share their stories truly reflected God’s love in every moment shared with them. It was great to learn about all the different orders.”

“Thank you for helping us on our journey to God’s own heart.”

“I rediscovered Joy! I greatly benefited from the fellowship, in being with others who are also

discerning.

“I wish I had invited more friends to experience this. You should do it maybe twice per year.”

“This weekend was a beautiful and AWESOME opportunity!” The Holy Spirit did wonderful work through all of you.

Thank you all for allowing me to attend.”

“The Life Awareness Retreat is an amazing opportunity to meet Religious and learn more about a life devoted fully to God. It also allowed me to get answers to questions I had.”

“This was the most beneficial retreat I have participated in. It amazed me how people from all stages in their discernment could come together and learn about themselves and about how God is calling each of them to serve.”

If you or someone you know could benefit from this retreat, contact your Pastor, Vocation Director or visit our website at www.diolaf.org/lifeawareness for brochures, posters, registration or more information.

01 Pope Benedict XVI 02 Bishop Michael Jarrell 03 Fr. Cyprian Eze 04 Fr. Richard Fabre 05 Fr. Kendal Faulk 06 Fr. Joseph Fazio, LC 07 Fr. Emmanuel Fernandez 08 Fr. Thomas Finley 09 Fr. Jerome Frey 10 Fr. Juan Luis Gandara 11 Fr. William Gearheard 12 Fr. Joseph Gillespie, LC 13 Msgr. Richard Greene, VE 14 Fr. Michael Guidry 15 Fr. Mitchell Guidry 16 Fr. Brad Guillory 17 Fr. Joshua Guillory 18 Fr. Jude Halphen 19 Msgr. Russell Harrington, VE 20 Fr. David Hebert 21 Fr. T.J. Hebert 22 Fr. Matthew Higginbotham 23 Fr. Justin Ileka 24 Fr. Godwin Imoru 25 Fr. Thomas James, SVD, VE 26 Fr. Johnathan Janise 27 Fr. Rofinus Jas, SVD 28 Fr. Bartlomiej Jasilek, SVD 29 Fr. Stanley Jawa, SVD 30 Fr. Ryszard Kalinowski, SVD 31 Fr. Donavan Labbe Eternal Father, we lift up to You these and all the priests of the world. Sanctify them. Heal and guide them. Mold them into the likeness of your Son, Jesus, the Eternal High Priest.

May their lives be pleasing to You. In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.

All participants in last year’s retreat enjoyed a spirit-filled weekend set on the beautiful grounds of the St. Charles Retreat Center in Moss Bluff. This year’s retreat will also be held there. Photo submitted by Wynard Boutté

Page 10 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Mensaje del Obispo: Agosto 2012 por Obispo Michael Jarrell El mes pasado cité en esta columna la carta escrita por el Obispo Jules B. Jeanmard, primer obispo de Lafayette.

Aquellos que lo recuerdan pueden dar constancia de un tema que le preocupaba mucho, la participación de los católicos en todos los niveles de la vida política del país. La carta continúa siendo tan relevante como lo fue antes. He aquí la misiva:

Clero, Religiosos y Laicos Diócesis de Lafayette Amadísimos Hermanos:

Debido a que las implicaciones morales que conlleva el ejercicio de la franquicia, o del derecho al voto, son tan grandes, y los abusos que se han suscitado son tan graves, me siento obligado a hacer una exposición de los principios que deben guiar a un pueblo cuando vota, tanto a nivel local, estatal o nacional.

En primer lugar, es sumamente importante que todo aquel que tenga la capacidad de votar que ejerza su derecho, tanto hombre como mujer. Nuestro Santo Padre, Papa Pio XII, recientemente afirmó que “el ejercicio de la franquicia es un acto de gran responsabilidad moral”. Abstenerse de votar, es un acto de abandono o traición: es entregarle nuestro derecho a las manos de aquellos que no quisieran que votáramos. El gobierno es lo que los votantes escogen. Que no se diga, como excusa, que un voto más o un voto menos no importa: solo se necesita un voto para una mayoría.

En segundo lugar, ustedes, en caridad, deben ver que otros, tales como los enfermos, el pobre que vive a la distancia, le

sean dados la facilidad de emitir su voto. Sin embargo, en este sentido, quisiera condenar de la manera más enérgica posible la práctica tan vergonzosa y degradante, tan común entre nuestra gente, de comprar y vender votos en los momentos de las elecciones. Casi no es necesario mencionar que el comprador de votos es más culpable que el vendedor porque, como regla, no tiene la excusa de la ignorancia.

Cada votante tiene la obligación en conciencia de emitir su voto por el candidato que, en su buen juicio, delante de Dios, esté mejor calificado para servir al bien común.

Antes de emitir su voto, es deber del votante, como un ser razonable, de familiarizarse con los programas como también del perfil y antecedentes del candidato, y decidir, cuál, en su juicio, defiende los derechos de la familia, justicia social, el debido respeto por la persona humana, moral pública y libertad religiosa. Ninguna nación puede sobrevivir si se ignora a Dios y hace caso omiso a Sus derechos. Los votantes deben estar atentos contra esos buscadores inescrupulosos de puestos políticos que ofrecen una plataforma fantástica que alimenta la imaginación del pueblo sencillo basado en promesas imposibles y ganar sus votos.

En la reciente declaración emitida por la Jerarquía de los Estados Unidos reunidos en Washington, los Obispos dicen lo siguiente sobre la “Moralidad y Política”.

“En la política, el principio de que ´todo vale, ´simplemente porque a la gente se le enseña a no esperar ningún alto grado de honor en los políticos, es tremendamente erróneo. Tenemos que recuperar ese sentido de deber personal de parte del votante y el sentido de confianza pública por parte del funcionario público electo que da dignidad y significado a la vida pública. Aquellos que son elegidos para ocupar un cargo público por sus ciudadanos se les confían una gran responsabilidad. Han sido elegidos no para su enriquecimiento sino para un servi-

NATIONWIDE CELLULAR SYSTEM

PERSONAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE SYSTEMS

cio público en consciencia. En sus discursos pobres en sus acciones, están sujetos a las mismas leyes de justicia y caridad que unen a los individuos privados en todas las otras esferas de la actividad. La deshonestidad, la calumnia, la detracción, y difamación son realmente transgresiones de los mandamientos de Dios cuando los funcionarios públicos recurren a ello así como también lo es para el resto de los ciudadanos…El mismo principio se aplica al robar de una caja registradora y obtener ganancias deshonestas que derivan de un cargo público. No vale decir, a modo de atenuante, que lo último pueda ser justificado o condenado porque ocurre en el orden público. La misma norma prohíbe las declaraciones falsas sobre ciudadanos privados y declaraciones falsas de miembros de grupos minoritarios y razas.

En este contexto déjese saber que el funcionario público que recurre al subterfugio para robar a un ciudadano cualificado, de su derecho inscribirse para votar, debido al color de su piel, viola el juramento a su oficio y se hace asimismo culpable del pecado de perjurio Como lo dijo muy bien un estadista, “La democracia solo puede subsistir cuando no otorga privilegios a un grupo perjudicando al otro. Si esto ocurre, se degenera en una demagogia y es incompatible con la religión, la historia, con la política y la razón humana.”

Guiada por los principios cristianos de la moral formulados en la presente instrucción, el ciudadano cristiano, al emitir su voto, va a satisfacer su conciencia y el mérito de Dios y el país.”

Con bendiciones, quedo Muy devotamente en Cristo, /s/Jules B. Jeanmard Obispo de Lafayette

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August 2012 Page 11

The Bishop’s Column: August 2012

by Bishop Michael Jarrell Last month in this column, I made reference to a letter written by Bishop Jules B. Jeanmard, first Bishop of Lafayette, in 1951. Those who are old enough to remember him will recall that one of his constant themes concerned the participation of Catholics in political life at all levels. In almost every respect, the letter is as relevant today as it was then. It is printed here in full: The Clergy, Religious and Laity Diocese of Lafayette Dearly beloved in Christ: So important are the moral implications in the exercise of the franchise, and so grave the abuses that have crept in, that I deem it my duty to set forth the Christian principles that should govern our people in casting their vote whether in national, state or local elections.

In the first place, it is a serious duty for all who are eligible to cast their vote—and this includes women as well as men. Our Holy Father, Pope Pius XII, has recently affirmed that “the exercise of the franchise is an act of grave moral responsibility.” To abstain from voting, then, is like an act of desertion or treason: it is playing in the hands of those who would not want you to vote. The government is what the voters make it. Let it not be said, as an excuse, that one vote more or less does not matter: it takes only one vote to make a majority.

Secondly, you should see to it, in your charity, that others, like the sick, the poor

who live at a distance, are given every facility to cast their vote. In this connection, however, I wish to condemn in the strongest possible terms the shameful and degrading practice, only too common among our people, of buying and selling votes at election time. It need hardly be said that the buyer of votes is even more guilty than the seller because, as a rule, he has not the excuse of ignorance.

Every voter has the obligation in conscience of casting his vote for the candidate who, in his good judgment, before God, are best qualified to serve the common good.

Before casting his vote, it is the duty of the voter, as a reasonable being, to acquaint himself with the programs as well as the character and background of the candidates, and decide which one will, in his judgment, best insure the rights of the family, social justice, proper respect for the human person, public morality and religious liberty.

No nation can survive if it ignores God and disregards His rights. The voter must be on his guard against those unscrupulous officeseekers who cynically announce fantastic platforms to feed the imagination of simple folk on impossible promises and win their votes.

In their statement recently issued by the Hierarchy of the United States assembled in Washington, the Bishops have this to say on “Morality and Politics”: “In politics, the principle that ‘anything goes’ simply because people are taught not to expect any high degree of honor in politicians, is grossly wrong. We have to recover that sense of personal obligation on the part of the voter and that sense of public trust on the part of the elected official which gives meaning and dignity to political life. Those who are selected for office by their fellowmen are entrusted with grave responsibility.

They have been selected not for self-enrich-

ment but for conscientious public service.

In their speech and in their actions, they are bound by the same laws of justice and charity which bind private individuals in every other sphere of activity. Dishonesty, slander, detraction, and defamation of character are as truly transgressions of God’s commandments when resorted to by men in political office as they are for all other men…One and the same standard covers stealing from the cash register and dishonest gains derived from public office. It will not do to say, by way of extenuation, that the latter can be excused or condoned because it occurs in the political order. One and the same standard prohibits false statements about private individuals and false statements about members of minority groups and races.

In this connection, let it be said that the official who has recourse to subterfuge in order to rob a citizen, otherwise qualified, of his right to register and vote, because of the color of his skin, violates his oath of office and makes himself guilty of the sin of perjury. As a famous living statesman has so well said, “Democracy can only subsist when it does not grant privileges to one class at the expense of another. If it does this, it degenerates into demagoguery and is incompatible with religion, with history, with politics and with human reason.”

Guided by the Christian principles of morality formulated in this instruction, the Christian citizen, in casting his vote, will satisfy his conscience and merit well of God and country.

With blessings, I am Very devotedly in Christ, /s/ Jules B. Jeanmard Bishop of Lafayette

Page 12 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Sacred Heart Church’s medical mission trip to Honduras

BROUSSARD Eighteen parishioners from Sacred Heart Church in Broussard traveled to Honduras in July 2012 for the parish’s second medical Mission trip. The mission team assisted in the city of San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and then operated a clinic in a remote mountain village named La Fortuna.

The team worked with Honduran Catholic missionaries while there.

Parishioners included doctors, dentists, dental assistants, nurses, para-medics, med-techs, Spanish speakers and other helpers.

In 2002, Tulane Catholic Student Center established Mission Honduras as a bi-annual studentrun service trip to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and the aldeas of the Merendon Mountains. The trip usually involves around thirty students who work with the Misioneros de Esperanza of San Pedro

Eighteen parishioners from Sacred Heart Church in Broussard recently embarked on a medical mission trip to bring aid to the people of Honduras. This was the parish’s second such trip since the beginning of the year. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart Church, Broussard

in January 2012, there was no the mission team helped at an orelectricity or running water in the phanage for handicapped children clinic. Dentists, nurses, and medin the city as well as a nursing techs worked in very rudimentary home for the elderly. When the conditions. Since that team traveled up the mountains, time, two diesel generahundreds of local people were tors have been donated seen at the clinic. Over 100 teeth

by Bret Adams of Pneuwere pulled; individuals said they matic and Hydraulic Co. had suffered for years with painand sent to the clinic. ful teeth. Broken arms were set, Hopefully, the care of wounds were cared for, medicines the local people will be for a variety of ills were dispensed assisted by the addition and general medical care was proof electricity. vided for all who came.

The first mission team While many people who came spent a week in January to the clinic lived in the local Pictured at the podium, St. Cecilia School parent Scott 2012. They were greeted mountains, one family walked for Boudreaux was one of several people from the Sacred and supported by the lofive hours to get to the clinic, and Heart Medical Mission team who visited with students to cal bishop, who did a another for three hours. There is share their mission experience with them. The school dedicated its 2012 Lenten project to supporting mis- commissioning ceremoso little basic medical or dental sionary efforts in the area. Through prayer, fasting, and ny for the group and incare available to the people that almsgiving, the school was able to contribute $7,000 to vited teams to continue they will walk great distances to help purchase a truck to assist the visiting missionaries. Photo submitted by St. Cecilia School coming. While there, receive care.

Sula to bring sustainable changes to the lives of the people of Merendon.

Sacred Heart parishioner and pre-med student Tim Rinaldi participated in several Tulane mission trips, and asked Father Louis Richard (Pastor) if he could speak to the parishioners and share the students’ vision of building a medical clinic in the mountain village of La Fortuna. Sacred Heart parishioners responded generously with funds for the clinic, and Tulane students began building the clinic and were able to have the local workers complete the project.

Broussard’s Sacred Heart Community became involved in missionary efforts to HonDuring the first medical mission duras after fellow parishioner Tim Rinaldi participated in several medical mission trips trip of Sacred Heart parishioners, through Tulane. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart Church, Broussard

Many local Lafayette doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and medical clinics have provided medicines and equipment for the clinic. Sacred Heart parish has raised thousands of dollars for this project and has also shipped containers and cases of medical supplies down to Honduras.

It is a dream of Sacred Heart parishioners and the Honduran Misioneros de Esperanza of San Pedro Sula to have a truck that could be used by a local doctor and other medical personnel to go up the mountains on a more regular basis. It is a three hour trip each way up and down the mountains.

In February 2012, representatives from the Sacred Heart Medical Mission Team visited with the student body of St. Cecilia School to share their work experiences in the mission fields of Honduras.

Following that visit, the school

Medical service is so difficult to come by in the small village of La Fortuna that one family actually walked five hours to reach the clinic, while another walked for three. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart Church, Broussard

launched its Lenten mission entitled “Honduras Mission of Hope” which encouraged students, parents, faculty, and staff to pray, fast, and give alms specifically for the San Pedro Sula and La Fortuna areas. Through those efforts, St. Cecilia School raised over $7,000 for the purchase of a 4 WD truck to assist the missionaries.

While the goal here is completely focused on the Hondurans who are visited, the missionaries who have participated are also forever changed from the experience. This is but a welcomed benefit of the higher mission to promote a better world outside of ourselves.

For more information, or to assist with future mission trips, please contact Colette Anzalone at Sacred Heart Church, by telephone at (337) 837-1864 or email at ministries@shbroussard.org.

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 13

Cathedral parishioners celebrate Fr. Arceneaux’s anniversary

by Kathleen Toups LAFAYETTE Parishioners of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist enthusiastically helped Father Chester Arceneaux, pastor, celebrate his 20th ordination anniversary.

They filled the church for the designated anniversary Mass, as well as the Cathedral-Carmel gym where the luncheon/reception was held.

Father Arceneaux, celebrant of the Mass, was joined by Father Cyprien Ezy, in residence at the Cathedral. Also taking part were Father Kevin Bordelon (Associate Pastor), Msgr. Richard Mouton (in residence), seminarians Matt Hebert and Patrick Broussard, and George Jordan (pastoral assistant).

The Cathedral choir, directed by organist Tom Niel, sang for the Mass. Melody Thibodaux was cantor, and Edward Mouton was lector. Bringing up the Offertory gifts were members of Father Arceneaux’s family, led by his mother Mrs. Nellie Arceneaux.

In his homily, Father Arceneaux recalled a theme from a sermon by Bishop Fulton Sheen who spoke of the “gift God gives to each of us to trust and surrender to His loving plan for us.”

This Sunday Mass celebrated the Nativity of St. John the Baptist

and Father Arceneaux noted the same theme in the lives of the Zachariah and Elizabeth, parents of John the Baptist, who trusted and waited for the birth of John.

Father Arceneaux thanked his family for their love and prayers supporting him and praised God, “He was our strength, our hope and this priesthood is a most precious gift. . .saving souls, comforting souls, witnessing to the love of God in the world, bringing hope, enabling young people to be empowered as leaders of the Church. For me, that is my thanksgiving today.”

Father Arceneaux is a native of Lafayette, the son of Mrs. Nellie Hebert and the late Sosthene Arceneaux. He began his seminary studies at St. Joseph Seminary College, Covington, earning a B.A. in Philosophy and finished his studies at Mount St. Mary’s, Emmitsburg, Md., where he earned a Master of Divinity degree. After ordination in 1982, he served as Associate Pastor of St. Theresa, Abbeville, and was later appointed Pastor. In 2002, he was appointed pastor of Our Lady of Wisdom on the campus of ULL, serving until 2010 when he was appointed to his present post as pastor of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist.

He has also served as Vicar for Black Catholics, chaplain to the

Bishop’s Opus Christi Magnum, a member of the diocesan Council of Priests, board of pastors of St. Thomas More Catholic High School, and on the foundation board for Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, as well as participating in many communal, spiritual and social ministries throughout this area.

The arrangements committee for the anniversary celebration expressed thanks to the many who contributed to its success including Frank and Pauline Gerami of

Incomplete Seminary Burses Billy Massie is the son of Mr. Charles W. Massie III and Mrs. Betty Crusta Dore. He is sponsored by the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Lafayette, and is currently in his second theology year at Sacred Heart School of Theology in Wisconsin.

Rev. Mr. Andre Metrejean is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Todd Metrejean. He is sponsored

by Our Lady of Wisdom Parish in Lafayette, and is currently in his fourth theology year at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Rev. Mr. Mark Miley is the son of Mr. and Mrs. M. H. Miley. He is sponsored by Sacred Heart Parish in New Iberia, and is currently in his fourth theology year at Sacred Heart School of Theology in Wisconsin.

John Miller is the son of Mr. and Mrs. John Curtis Miller. He is sponsored by St. Landry Parish in Opelousas, and is currently in his second college year at St. Joseph Seminary College in Louisiana.

Rene Pellessier is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Pellessier. He is sponsored by St. Mary Mother of the Church Parish in Lafayette, and is currently in his fourth college year at St. Joseph Seminary College in Louisiana.

Father Chester Arceneaux’s family gathered to help him celebrate his 20th ordination anniversary, even members from California. They include here, from left, front row, his mother, Mrs Nellie Arceneaux; Charlotte Arceneaux, Jacques Francois Marine, Madeline Arceneaux; Samantha Marine; back row, standing, Father Arceneaux, John Arceneaux, Jon-Pierre Marine, Kearney Marine. Photo by Rob Davis

Party Central, Brady LeBlanc, Mark and Gladys Blanc, Theresa Guidry; Dot and Naomi, flower arrangements; Sean Primeaux, slide show; Cathedral staff, Holy Goats Men’s Group; parish Family Life committee, Cathedral Couples, Knights of Columbus, Boy Scouts, Catholic Daughters, Robert and Marcelle Langlinais, Keith’s Ballroom, Zea’s Restaurant, Rob Davis, Cathedral-Carmel School, Cathedral choir, and numerous volunteers who came forward to offer their help.

Photos of Massie, Miller, & Pellessier are by Paul Kieu. Photos of Metrejean & Miley are by P.C. Piazza.

219 Msgr. Wm. J. Teurlings (13,417.00) 236 John E. Lee, Jr.

(9,324.60) 239 St. Joseph

(9,076.48) 242 Lee C. Lavergne

(7,079.73) 244 Rev. Julian Van Exem #2 (12,524.06) 248 Msgr. Alphonse Martel (11,000.00) 253 Serra Club

(15,534.49) 254 Rusty Randol

(1,742.76) 260 St. Theresa #2

(5,697.46) 266 Paul & Mary Karre

(2,105.00) 268 M/M Fournet #2

(570.65) 271 Rev. J.A.M. Van Brero (710.00) 272 Msgr P. Alexandre Borel (1,625.00) 274 Msgr Emery Labbe Burse (6,310.00) 278 Msgr Daniel Bernard

(3,674.64) 281 Harry Van Tiel Family (3,969.00) 283 Noemie L. Petitjean

(2,000.00) 284 Msgr. Daniel Habetz (6,590.00) 286 P.J. Reiners #2

(9,500.00) 288 Rev Oscar Drapeau

(2,000.00) 290 Rev. P.G.J. Kemps

(1,000.00) 291 Lucille M. Griffin Mem. (5,000.00) 292 Anonymous

(10,470.00) 293 Msgr. Fernand Gouaux (4,770.00) 294 Robert A. Frey Memorial (7,360.00) 297 A Priest Burse #2

(12,400.00) 308 Harold/Ruby Moreau Family Memorial (5,000.00) 309 Libby Holcombre Memorial Burse (2,000.00) 318 Msgr. Marcel Murie Burse (5,260.00) 319 Marcel/Alfred Gaudet #5 (1,942.80) 322 Fr Jean Paradis Burse #2 (5,000.00) 323 Charlene Richard Burse (3,030.00) 326 Fr. Raphael Gauthier Burse #2 (3,757.17) 327 Msgr. Albert Bacque Burse #2 (325.00) 330 Rev Verbis Lafleur #3 (8,250.00) 332 Ben/Louisa Larriviere Burse #2 (3,750.00) 337 Col. Chap Kenneth Bienvenu Bur (13,714.99) 340 Rev. James Doiron Burse (2,272.17) 346 Msgr. Alexander O. Sigur Mem. (2,250.00) 348 Rev. J. Wilson Matt & Mire Fam (500.00) 351 Sonnier Burse #2

(11,300.00) 352 St. Edmond Church Parish (9,000.00) 354 CDA #3

(10,750.63) 355 Gabriel Lucas Mem Fund (Morse) (15,194.21) 356 Mrs. Louise White

(10,110.00) 358 Therese Esteves #5

(7,516.49) 359 St Peter Par-New Iberia (10,422.35) 363 Ramona Crosby Bennerfield (2,180.52) 364 St. Jude Burse #2

(8,030.00) 366 A. Otis & Etta Hebert Memorial (5,000.00) 367 Bishop O’Donnell Burse (3,545.00) 368 Reverend Jules Speyrer (10,000.00) 370 Msgr. Burton Mouton Burse (10,700.00) 375 Rev Charles Marin Burse (100.00) 376 Bishop Jeanmard Burse (5,714.00) 377 Marie Franques Kenneth Lacaze (3,000.00) 378 Bishop Gerard Frey Burse (12,522.00) 379 Rev. Moise Hebert #2 (3,403.61) 380 Lay Honorees #6

(3,974.50) 381 Mrs Dorphi Marie Duhon Mem. (2,181.50) 382 Anonymous Retired Priest #7 (15,000.00) 383 James K Bourque Mem Burse Fund (4,330.00) 384 Bishop Schexnayder Burse #3 (940.19) 385 Fr. Mike Bakowski Mem Burse (3,400.00) 386 Coignard/Gremillion Burse #2 (2,500.00) 387 In Memory Of Mr & Mrs Scranton Mouton

(9,000.00) 388 Blessed John Paul II

(2,600.00)

July Donors 297 Anonymous 5,000.00 354 Catholic Daughters Of America 350.00 354 Catholic Daughters Of America 200.00

Your Contributions Help Educate Future Priests

Page 14 August 2012

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August 2012 Page 15

Page 16 August 2012

Marriage 101: Managing the empty nest

by Kelley Chapman The empty nest can be a struggle whether you are a single parent or a married couple.

According to Psychologytoday.com, “empty nest” is when all children have become adults and have moved out of their childhood home.

Some parents are left with the feeling of depression or sadness, while other parents are rejoicing because their children have taken another step toward their journey in a positive way.

Foryourmarriage.com claims that now is the opportunity for parents to “reconnect with their spouse” as well as themselves. Discover who you are as an adult without children. Explore a new hobby outside of the home or revive one from the past that you have put away in order to raise your children, like painting, photography, etc. Reconnect with old friends and plan weekly or monthly gatherings, or even join adult aged clubs and meet new ones.

This transitional stage is a great time in your life to really get out in the community and volunteer. There are so many organizations, as well as your local church parishes, that are in need of volunteers.

Reconnecting with your faith, or digging deeper into it, can also be a good use of your time. You may even consider taking a course that inspires you such as Theology, the History of the Church, etc.

“Empty nest” should be a time where you, as a parent, are able to hold your head high and be proud of the independent, responsible child/children that you have raised.

If you do not have a child leaving the home this year, start preparing them for when they are leaving. Do they know how to do laundry correctly? Are they able to cook something besides macaroni & cheese in the microwave? Can they handle their finances?

I started my first babysitting job when I was 12 years old. My parents took me to the bank and we set up an account. From that point on, I had to balance my check book and pay for the items that I wanted, not needed.

I am thankful that my parents prepared me early as I was able to understand the concept of money and the differences between what I wanted and what I needed. Therefore, when I left for college, I was able to manage my finances as well as household duties on my own.

There are many possibilities to deal with the “empty nest” besides turning your child’s room into the closet you always wanted. For more information on the empty nest visit the following sites: www.psychologytoday.com www.foryourmarriage.org http://single-parenting.families.com/blog/empty-nest-syndrome-for-thesingle-parent# www.lifescript.com

Acadiana Catholic

Math workshop at Carencro Catholic

Carencro Catholic’s middle school math teacher, Barbra Ortego, hosted a two-day math enrichment workshop in July. Seventh and eighth grade students used a system called “Hands on Equations” to solve multi-step algebra equations using manipulatives and pictures. They also participated in a geometry activity and reviewed basic math facts using games like “Math Simon Says”. Photo submitted by Carencro Catholic School

Married couples cruise retreat LAFAYETTE Fathers Jude Halphen, PhD and Neil McNeill would like to invite all married couples to join them for a special married couples retreat on board the Holland America cruise ship. The seven-day cruise is scheduled to depart from Seattle, Washington on September 22, with ports of call to include: Juneau, Glacier Bay, Sitka, and Ketchikan, Alaska; and Victoria, British Columbia.

Space is limited, and early booking is recommended to ensure accommodations. Additional information—including rates—may be obtained online at www.globetrektravel.com.

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Subscribe to the Acadiana Catholic for just $1 per issue ($12 a year).

Gift subscriptions are also available.

Call (337) 261-5650 to sign up today!

Registration for Cycle 6 of VLCFF

LAFAYETTE Registration for Cycle 6 of the Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation (VLCFF) will open on Tuesday, July 10 and close on Wednesday, August 22. Classes within the cycle will be conducted from August 26-September 29.

In the Lafayette Diocese, successful completion of VLCFF courses may be applied toward a Certificate in Catechesis, or toward the continuing education hours required by the diocese’s Office of Catholic Schools. Also, since the diocese is a partner in the VLCFF, all residents within the diocese may participate at the reduced cost of $40 per course.

Courses to be offered during Cycle 6 will include: Administration in Ministry; Many Faces of Adult Learners; Mary in Scripture and Tradition; and Praying with Children. A complete list of all courses being offered, as well as their full descriptions, is accessible online at www. vlc.udayton.edu. A calendar of remaining cycles to be conducted during 2012 is also available through this site.

For further information on the partnership between the University of Dayton Institute for Pastoral Initiative and the Lafayette Diocese, please contact the Office of Christian Formation at (337) 261-5550.

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Tell the People program schedule for August

LAFAYETTE The Lafayette Diocese’s Office of Radio/TV Ministry invites everyone to tune in for Sunday Mass at 10:00 a.m. on KATC TV-3. The diocesan television program, Tell the People, is also scheduled to air on the channel immediately following the Mass.

Each week, Tell the People features the segments “Inside the Diocese� with Trista Littell, “Local Catholic News� with Stephanie Bernard, “What it Means to be Catholic� with Father Michael Champagne, CJC, and “Interview with the Bishop� with Msgr. Richard Greene and Bishop Michael Jarrell.

On August 12, local resident Don Berkowicz will appear to discuss the Great Adventure Bible Study which will be continuing soon at Holy Cross Church in Lafayette (see related article on page 38). Also on the program, Father Champagne will focus on “Means to Sanctity: Prayer and Works.�

Bishop Jarrell will close with a discussion of the upcoming Ordinations to the Permanent Diaconate (scheduled for August 18 and August 25 at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Lafayette.

On August 19, guests Ka-

tie Austin and Paul George will be on hand to review upcoming events at Our Lady of Wisdom Church and Catholic Student Center, and to talk about the new campus minister. Father Champagne’s talk will be entitled “Interior Means to Sanctity: Examination of Conscience and Fidelity to Grace.�

On August 26, Superintendent of Catholic Schools Anna Larriviere will appear to give a report on the start of the 2012-2012 school year, and Father Champagne will base his segment on “Exterior Means to Sanctity: Plan of Life and Holy Friendships.�

Past episodes of Tell the People may be viewed online at the diocesan website, www. diolaf.org. To access the videos, select Radio/TV Ministry from the pull-down menu located under the OFFICES tab. The site also offers other programs that have been produced by the office, such as The Mysteries of the Rosary in both French and English.

Information on television and radio air times for The Mysteries of the Rosary, as well as a television schedule for Tell the People, may also be found on the Radio/TV Ministry page.

Page 18 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

New Orleans Province Jesuits honor 18 jubilarians at Jesuit Jubilee

Religious retirement office distributes $23 million in funding

NEW ORLEANS The New Orleans Province of the Society of Jesus and guests recently honored Jesuits celebrating milestones of service to the Society and the Church with the long-standing tradition of the Jesuit Jubilee.

Festivities in New Orleans began with a special Mass at Immaculate Conception Church on July 29; after Mass, honorees and their guests enjoyed a special reception in the Roosevelt Ballroom of The Roosevelt New Orleans.

The Jesuits of the New Orleans Province are a congregation of priests and brothers working in the vision of St. Ignatius of Loyola to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world. The New Orleans Province includes 201 men seeking to work hand-in-hand with the laity to bring Jesus to those who seek Him. This year’s Jubilarians have gifted a combined total of 980 years of service to the Society of Jesus

WASHINGTON (USCCB) The National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) distributed $23 million in financial assistance in June to 453 religious communities to aid in the care of their senior members. The funds were made possible by the annual collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious, which benefits elderly Catholic sisters, brothers, and priests in religious orders. The most recent collection raised over $27 million and was held in the majority of U.S. Catholic parishes in December 2011.

The funding disbursed in late June is known as Direct Care Assistance and represents the majority of financial assistance distributed by the NRRO. Additional funding will be allocated for religious communities with the greatest needs and for ongoing education in retirement planning and elder-care delivery.

Ninety-five percent of donations aid elderly religious, while five percent are used for administration.

“The good our office is able to do is in direct measure to the good we have been given,” said NRRO Executive Director Sister Janice Bader, a member of the Sisters of the Most Precious Blood of O’Fallon, Missouri.

“We continue to be humbled and overwhelmed by the generosity of Catholics across the nation who faithfully support our senior religious each year.”

The Catholic bishops in the

75 Years in the Society Fr. A. Gerard Fineran, SJ 70 Years in the Society Fr. Rodney T. Kissinger, SJ Fr. Louis A. Poché, SJ 60 Years in the Society Fr. John N. Folzenlogen, SJ Fr. Christopher A. Billac, SJ Fr. James L. Lambert, SJ 60 Years in the Priesthood Fr. John J. Heaney, SJ 50 Years in the Society Fr. Wayne D. Herpin, SJ Fr. Peter S. Rogers, SJ Fr. Edward Salazar, SJ 50 Years in the Priesthood Fr. Clair M. Cazayoux, SJ Fr. Martin L. Elsner, SJ Fr. Ernest C. Ferlita, SJ Fr. Donald J. Martin, SJ Fr. Bert Mead, SJ Fr. Thomas J. Tierney, SJ Fr. Hervé Racivitch, SJ 25 Years in the Priesthood Fr. J. William Harmless, SJ

Fr. James L. Lambert, pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Church in Grand Coteau, was among the 18 Jesuit jubilarians honored at a recent Mass in New Orleans’ Immaculate Conception Church. This year, Fr. Lambert is celebrating his 60th anniversary in the Society.

and the Catholic Church.

Friends of St. Charles Borromeo Church in Grand Coteau will note that the parish’s current pastor, Fr. James L. Lambert, SJ, is among this year’s jubilarians. Fr. Lambert is an alumnus of Jesuit High School of Tampa. After entering the Society of Jesus, he earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Spring Hill College, a doctoral degree in organic chemistry from Johns Hopkins University and a Licentiate of Sacred Theology from Woodstock College. He was a teacher and campus minister at Spring Hill College for 27 years, where he also served as academic dean and chair of the chemistry department for 11 years. Fr. Lambert became pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in 1996. After four years, he was appointed as the provincial’s assistant for parish and retreat ministry and continued to serve Our Lady of Guadalupe Church as associate pastor for five years. In 2005, he was missioned to St. Charles Borromeo Church in Grand Coteau, La., where he has been pastor for the last seven years.

Please remember these and all priests in your prayers as they continue to dedicate themselves to the service of the Roman Catholic Church.

United States launched the Retirement Fund for Religious in 1988 to address the significant lack of retirement funding among religious communities.

The NRRO, formerly the TriConference Retirement Office, was established to coordinate the annual collection and to distribute the proceeds to religious communities in need. Today, the organization is sponsored by the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM), the Conference of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR), the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Traditionally, Catholic sisters, brothers, and religious order priests, known collectively as women and men religious, served for small stipends that did not include retirement benefits. As a result, many religious communities now lack adequate savings for retirement and elder care.

Religious communities are financially autonomous and thus responsible for the care of their senior members. Most support elder care through their own income and savings, and many also participate in government programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Annual allocations from the Retirement Fund for Religious supplement these funds and help underwrite a variety of immediate and ongoing needs, such as prescription medications and nursing care.

Acadiana Catholic

BSA workshop & ministry fair scheduled for August 11 LAFAYETTE The Lafayette Diocese’s Office of Development will host its annual Bishop’s Services Appeal (BSA) workshop and ministry fair on Saturday, August 11. The event, which is to be held from 8:30-11:30 a.m. at the Immaculata Center in Lafayette, is open only to clergy members and parish BSA leaders. Bishop Michael Jarrell will also celebrate Mass inside Immaculata Chapel immediately following the conclusion of the workshop.

The BSA workshop and ministry fair is held each year in order to help clergy and parish leaders prepare for the launch of the annual BSA fundraising campaign. During the workshop, they will hear words of encouragement offered by Bishop Jarrell and Connie Babin (director, Office of Development), and be introduced to the 2012-2013 BSA Leadership Team. Those in attendance will also hear from directors of the diocesan central offices, who will give highlights and a

general overview of the various programs and ministries which would not be possible without the financial support of the funds raised each year by the BSA campaign.

Additionally, participants will be encouraged to tour around Fuselier Auditorium, where exhibits from all the diocesan central offices will be set up for viewing. Each exhibit will also be represented by one or more employees of that office, who will be on hand to answer any questions or listen to any comments or suggestions from their visitors. The purpose of this special ministry fair portion of the workshop is to allow BSA leaders an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the many programs and ministries that are funded through the Bishop’s Services Appeal, so that they may bring that information back to serve others within their own church parishes.

Before the conclusion of the workshop, all parish BSA leaders will receive their 2012-2013 packets to help them plan for

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a successful BSA parish campaign. Each packet will include a copy of Bishop Jarrell’s new BSA message, which all church parishes will be encouraged to play for their parishioners during the BSA Kick-off weekend, currently scheduled for October 6-7. Other packet materials will include in-pew pledge envelopes, brochures, bookmarks, and posters for display.

For additional information regarding this event, please contact the diocese’s Office of Development at (337) 261-5641.

Agencies or services funded wholly or in part by the Bishop’s Services Appeal: •Acadiana Catholic •Adoptions / Maternity •Archives: Research / Infor mation •Black Catholic Ministries •Building / Renovation •Catholic Schools •Christian Formation: Reli gious Education •Development: BSA / Planned

August 2012 Page 19

Giving •Hispanic Catholic Ministries •Housing / Institutions •Human Resources / Safe En vironment •Justice and Peace •Marriage and Family Life Ministries •Migration / Refugee Services •Minister to Priests •Msgr. Sigur Center •Office for Religious Brothers and Sisters •Ongoing Formation of Priests •Pastoral Care of Elderly •Persons with Disabilities •Permanent Diaconate •Prison Ministry •Pro-Life Apostolate •Radio /TV Ministry •Seminarians / Vocations •Stewardship •Tribunal •Vicar for Priests •Vietnamese Catholic Minis tries •Website Development •Worship / Liturgy •Youth Ministry

Page 20 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Father Taras Kraychuk: from drug dealer to Catholic monk

by Ramon Gonzalez Catholic News Service LAC STE. ANNE, Alberta (CNS) For years, the alcohol, the drugs, the parties consumed Taras Kraychuk.

Then, literally, he saw the light.

He’s now Father Taras (Terry) Kraychuk, serving as a hieromonk -- pastor-monk -- in the Ukrainian Catholic Church and living the monastic life near Derwent, Alberta.

For 12 years, Father Kraychuk has followed God’s call to serve others, he told about 2,000 participants at the Catholic Family Life Conference at Lac Ste. Anne in early July.

Father Kraychuk said his conversion came on a bus trip from California to his family in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He had decided to return home at the urging of friends who felt his hard-driving lifestyle would lead to his death.

The light appeared, he said,

soon after he dumped the illicit drugs he was carrying into the toilet in the back of the bus, and he promised God that he would try not to get drunk again. Suddenly, he recalled, he realized that Christ loved him despite his decadent lifestyle.

As he looked out a bus window, Father Kraychuk said he saw God’s creation with new eyes. He turned to the biker-type man behind him, with whom he had exchanged stories about the partying life during the trip, and realized something had happened to his new friend at the same time.

They started to talk loudly. People came from the front of the bus to the back and sat down and listened to the pair.

“That was the moment my life turned around,” Father Kraychuk said.

Not long afterward, Father Kraychuk began working in native missions in northern Canada, discerning a call to the priesthood and monastic life in the Ukrai-

nian Catholic Church. He studied at the Benedictine Seminary of Christ the King in Mission, British Columbia, at the Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Redwood Valley, Calif., and at Holy Spirit Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Ottawa before being ordained in 2000.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Father Kraychuk was the child of a devout Ukrainian Catholic family that prayed together and attended Mass weekly.

“I grew up in the faith, but I drifted away from those roots,” he told the audience attending the four-day conference. “When I was about 15 or 16, I was into the drug scene.”

As Father Kraychuk put it, he rejected the land of the church and took off to find another land.

“I wanted to experience all the excitement, all the drugs, all the partying, all that belongs with that kind of life,” he said.

When he was kicked out of high school, he left the church and his

family and became a biker, traveling throughout much of the United States and Canada. Eventually, he landed in Southern California.

“I was living in a place where all my needs where met, selling drugs and making money,” he said.

He never stopped believing that God existed but essentially abandoned himself to fate. Any time he would get in trouble, he would call on God. He constantly read his Gideon Bible, believing that if he read it often, God would protect him from the police.

One rainy day, as he looked through a window, thoughts of emptiness and suicide filled his mind.

“I really thought there was nothing to live for,” he said. “I wanted to blow myself away because there was no reason; this is all absurd. This is all meaningless.”

In that moment, he heard a voice commanding him to take the Bible and read it. He opened continued on page 30

Catholic Daughter of the Year Banquet

In Franklin, the Catholic Daughters Court Assumption #1672 recently held their Daughter of the Year banquet, honoring Marian Pusateri, who has been a member since 1966. Marian is pictured with her six children, 13 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, and other family members and friends. Photo submitted by Charlene Blanchard

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 21

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Catholic Conscience and Public Policy online

LAFAYETTE On behalf of Bishop Michael Jarrell, the Lafayette Diocese’s Office of Radio/TV Ministry urges everyone to watch the current episode of Catholic Conscience and Public Policy, which is currently available online at www. diolaf.org. The video may be accessed by selecting Radio/TV Ministry from the pull-down menu underneath the OFFICES tab of the home page.

Catholic Conscience and Public Policy is a production of the Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops. In this episode, Executive Director Danny Loar and Associate Director Rob Tasman reviewed the results of the state’s latest legislative session. One area of particular interest was that of education reform, including the statewide expansion of the scholarship program and the

potential impact this expansion will have on the state’s Catholic schools.

Tasman and Loar also discussed some of the pro-life matters which were addressed during the session, especially those concerning end-of-life and beginning-of-life issues.

In the later half of the episode, they commented on standard budget issues and how certain budget cuts may effect Catholic institutions such as hospitals and Catholic Charities.

In closing, Loar and Tasman summarized the legislative session’s activities in regards to several social justice issues, including criminal justice reform, human trafficking, and the proposed drug testing in relation to the Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program.

The video for Catholic Conscience and Public Policy, provided by the Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops, may be viewed online at www.diolaf.org. To access the video, please select Radio/TV Ministry from the pull-down menu located under the OFFICES tab.

Beneath the video of Catholic Conscience and Public Policy, visitors will also notice a link to the quiz “Are You a Faithful Citizen?” which is provided by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The 20-question quiz is designed to test one’s knowledge of current issues facing the country, as well as his or her understanding of how the Roman Catholic Church’s teachings pertain to those issues. Answers and explanations to all of

After viewing Catholic Conscience and Public Policy, click on the “Are You a Faithful Citizen?” link to take the quiz provided by the USCCB.

the questions may be accessed by clicking on the link provided after the last question on the quiz.

Acadiana Catholic

A Vacation with the Lord

Our Lady of the Oaks Retreat House, Grand Coteau, La. (337) 662-5410 www.ourladyoftheoaks.com

Easton Hebert, Spiritual Director Quiet “Silence helps draw together the scattered and dissipated energies of a fragmented existence. It helps us to concentrate on a purpose that really corresponds not only to the deeper needs of our own being but also to God’s intentions for us.” Thomas Merton-Love and Living Most of us do not want to acknowledge that sometimes we are just “scattered.” Instead of truly being present to the moment, we are anticipating what the next one has in store for us. Living in today’s culture, as our exterior lives increase in velocity, is it any wonder that our interior is always in high gear? A silent retreat gives us the opportunity to stop, not just the exterior movement, but also the interior activity present in us, and to tend, as Merton suggests, “the deeper needs of our own being and also God’s intentions for us”.

My first silent retreat came as a result of being invited by a friend. I refused him at first, but the quiet way of the Holy Spirit prodded me towards acceptance. I believe this was a defining moment in my spiritual journey. It was on this retreat that I realized how much I relished quiet and solitude. I was alone with God and at the same time surrounded by seekers like myself.

The time of silence and stillness afforded by a retreat allows us the realization that we can choose what we want our lives to look like. We come to recognize that quiet is necessary to restore our souls. It is when our souls are fully alive that we can, as St. Ignatius challenges us, find God in all things. My first retreat instilled in me a hunger for more connectedness with God and with my own inner life. It began a consciousness in me that life is sacred, that God is, in fact, in all things.

Since that first retreat I attended over 25 years ago I have journeyed through the 19th Annotation of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius which began, for me, a regimen of daily prayer and yearly silent retreats. I have come to look forward to my quiet time in prayer each day. It is a restorative time for my soul and prepares me to hear God throughout my day. Through His quiet promptings, I can sense His presence in my life.

Going on a silent retreat gives us that time away from the world’s distractions and allows us to listen to the sometimes small voice of God that can offer us a most profound message. A retreat can be a life-changing event.

Join us at Our Lady of the Oaks on a most important part of your spiritual journey and allow the Lord to begin something new in you. And as my friend did for me, why not invite a companion to experience this sacred time with you?

Give yourself the gift of silence.

Acadiana Catholic

Dr. Geralyn C. Shelvin national award recipient

LAFAYETTE Congratulations go to Dr. Geralyn C. Shelvin, who recently received the first Servant of Christ Award (Servus Pro Christie) for the Diocese of Lafayette. The award was given in recognition for her service and leadership to the Church and community at the local, state, and national level.

The award was presented to Dr. Shelvin as part of the 2012 National Black Catholic Congress XI, held in Indianapolis, Indiana. This national congress only occurs every five years; its mission is to establish an agenda for the evangelization of African-Americans, and to improve the spiritual, mental and physical conditions of African-Americans.

The organization commits to the freedom and growth of Blacks as full participants in church and society. Over 2,000 black Catholics from all over the world gathered in Indianapolis to celebrate 25 years of “What We Have Seen and Heard” as they implemented the theme of “Faith Engaged: Empower. Equip.

Evangelize.”

The Servant of Christ Award is a new award developed by the leadership of the National Black Catholic Congress (NBCC), includes bishops,

Dr. Geralyn C. Shelvin (center) recently received the first Servant of Christ Award at the National Black Catholic Congress in July. Pictured above with Dr. Shelvin is Bishop J. Terry Steib, SVD (left), Bishop of the Diocese of Memphis, TN, and Valarie Washington (right), Director of the NBCC. Photo submitted by Stephanie Bernard

priests, religious and laymen and women, representing a broad spectrum of both clerical and lay leadership and service in the Church. The National Black Catholic Congress leaders asked diocesan bishop of every diocese in the United States to submit the name of an African American Catholic in their diocese who best personifies Christian servant-leadership in the African American community—a servant-

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leadership, which is creative and heroic, self-sacrificing and, self-giving and exercised in the Name of Christ, who came, “not to be served, but to serve. . .”

Dr. Geralyn Carmouche Shelvin resides in Lafayette, Louisiana and has been a member of the Knights of Peter Claver Ladies Auxiliary since transferring from the Junior Daughter Division in 1978. She is a member of St. Paul Chapter # 3 of the Fourth Degree Ladies of Grace Division. She has previously served at the National Level for the KPC Fourth Degree Ladies of Grace Division as Supreme Navigator, Supreme Captain, and Conclave Scribe.

She is a member of St. Paul the Apostle Roman Catholic Church and serves as an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, Minister of the Word, and Coordinator of the Ministers of Care.

Dr. Shelvin is a graduate of Cathedral-Carmel High School and is a registered nurse. She has completed graduate and postgraduate studies in health care and business administration. Her work experiences of thirty years include: Nurse Director, Nursing Supervision, Continuing Education Specialist, Education Supervisor, Director of Education, Director of Pastoral Care Services, Human Resource Consultant, and Director of Community Services. She is currently employed by the United States Government, Department of Defense, and Veteran Affairs Division managing a community-based outpatient clinic.

Some of her affiliations include

August 2012 Page 23

the following: Diamond Life Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated (Past Chapter President – Lafayette Alumnae Chapter), Life Member National Council of Negro Women, Sigma Theta Tau International (Honor Society of Nursing), Board of Directors of the National Black Catholic Congress, Board of Consultants for the National Black Catholic Apostolate for Life, National Council of Catholic Women and an Affiliate Member of the Black Sisters Conference. She also currently serves on the Subcommittee for African-Affairs for Cultural Diversity for the United States Congress of Catholic Bishops.

In the community, Dr. Shelvin has written grants totaling more than half a million dollars to bring healthcare to the underserved and uninsured in the Lafayette area. She has collaborated with First Lady Michelle Obama and other national leaders for the “Let’s Move” initiate to decrease obesity in our young people. Dr. Shelvin was among the 150 persons invited to the White House by President Obama for the 2012 Prayer Breakfast, which was also attended by Vice President Joseph Biden.

Dr. Shelvin completed her third and final term as Supreme Lady for the Knights of Peter Claver Ladies Auxiliary on July 11, 2012 at the national convention in Dallas, Texas where she received a Gold Medal of Merit Award in conjunction with the Knights of Peter Claver, Incorporated, being presented with The Centennial Medal presented by Fr. Larry Snyder, President, Catholic Charities USA for providing service to people in need, for being an advocate for justice in social structures, and for calling the entire church and other people of good will to do the same.

In addition to Dr. Shelvin, delegates from the Lafayette Diocese who attended the 2012 National Black Catholic Conference included Fr. Jason Mouton, Pastor of St. Anne, Youngsville; Fr. Aaron Melancon, Pastor of St. Joseph, Milton; Stephanie Bernard, Director of Black Catholics and members of St. Anne, Youngsville; St. Joseph, Milton; Our Lady Queen of Peace, Lafayette; St. Anthony, Lafayette; Assumption , Carencro and St. Paul, Catholic parishes.

Page 24 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Unusual collection from Vietnam Veterans Memorial reflects a

by Nancy Frazier O’Brien Catholic News Service LANDOVER, Md. (CNS) Duery Felton Jr. calls them “icons.”

The religious articles gathered up each day at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington are just a small part of the estimated 400,000 items left in honor of a veteran and collected twice daily

by National Park Service employees since the memorial opened 30 years ago.

But for Felton, curator of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection held at the Museum Re-

source Center in Landover, many of the items represent a mystery that will never be solved.

He holds up a small cross on a pedestal. A piece of paper affixed to the bottom says the cross was made from square nails used to build the original St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Kasson, Minn., in 1873.

But that doesn’t answer Felton’s many questions: Who left the item and for whom? What did the church mean to the veteran or the person who left the cross?

“Most of the three-dimensional objects in the collection come

Visitors walk along and touch the black granite panels that make up the Wall -- the informal name of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington June 26. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the memorial, which was dedicated Nov. 13, 1982. About 4 mil lion visitors a year walk past the inscribed names of 58,267 men and women killed or missing in action. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

A metal cross marked with a Green Beret pin and the name of Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Delaney is displayed by curator Duery Felton Jr. of the National Park Service Museum Resource Center in Landover, Md., June 15. The cross is among some 400,000 items that have been left at the Wall and preserved in the facility. Delaney’s name appears on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on line 99 of panel 23 on the west side. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

with no explanation of what it is or what it means,” he said.

There is even a box of rocks left at the memorial on the National Mall. Felton isn’t sure, but he thinks some veterans bring the rocks as a symbol that they have “put their burdens down” and left their bad memories of Vietnam at the memorial.

“This is a collection unlike any other,” Felton said. It is the only collection in which the public decides what will be included, the only one made up of items left by the living for the dead and the only one in which “the bias of what is worthy is taken out” of the curator’s hands, he said.

But Felton believes that is more than appropriate for a memorial to those who served in “a completely different kind of war” -- the only U.S. war that was never officially declared.

“It’s Vietnam, so you can leave

Curator Duery Felton Jr. holds open a pocket Bible from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection at a National Park Service museum storehouse in Landover, Md., June 15. Dated Veterans Day 1986 and written by an Army medic, the inscription reads: “I carri ed this every day, on every mission. I leave it at the Wall in memory of my friends and our patients. Dale E. Lacher.” CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

logic out the door,” he said.

With the exception of plant matter, food and unaltered U.S. flags, every item left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is preserved and cataloged. The flags are given to veterans’ hospitals, visitors to the memorial or civic groups such as the Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts.

The collection started almost by accident when a park ranger who thought the items had been left inadvertently started a kind of lost and found, thinking those who had left the items would return for them one day.

When no one came back for the items -- and more were donated each day -- the collection was born.

The most popular items left at the memorial are notes or letters, many of which are not addressed

to a specific veteran. Thousands of metal bracelets commemorating a specific Vietnam prisoner of war or missing in action also have been left behind.

The largest item held in the collection is believed to be a painting on a 9-foot-by-5-foot sliding glass door that shows a scene in Vietnam and displays the names of all those who were POWs or listed as missing in action.

Donated with the door is a fullsize reproduction of a tiger cage, like the ones that held POWs during the war. The cage is currently on display at the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of American History.

Another candidate for largest item is a Harley-Davidson motorcycle bearing a Wisconsin license plate with the word HERO. The group of Wisconsin veterans that

Curator Duery Felton Jr. reads the name imprinted on a cross at the National Park Service Museum Resource Center in Landover, Md., June 15. He oversees the Vietnam Memorial Collection, a sizable and growing archive of mementos left at the Wall. CNS phot o/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

Acadiana Catholic

a unique war

they need to. And he admits that he sometimes has to do the same himself.

“In my office I keep a photo of

A paratrooper’s prayer card, illustrated with the emblem of the Army’s 1st Cavalry Division, is seen displayed June 15 in the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection at a National Park Service museum storehouse in Landover, Md. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

donated it has asked that no one be allowed to sit on the motorcycle -- hand-painted with scenes of Vietnam -- until all those MIA in Vietnam have been accounted for.

According to the Department of Defense, 1,664 veterans are still missing in action in Vietnam.

most popular medals are those dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel, patron saint of paratroopers; St. Anthony of Padua and St. Nicholas, both considered the patron saint of sailors; and St. Therese of Lisieux, patron saint of pilots and air crews.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection is one of about 40

August 2012 Page 25

a very good friend who died in battle,” he said. “That keeps my feet on the ground.”

The name of Maryknoll Father Vincent R. Capodanno, a Navy chaplain who was killed while serving with the Marines in Vietnam, is seen on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington June 26. The names of 16 members of the clergy -- seven Catholic, seven P rotestant and two Jewish -- are inscribed in the Wall, according to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. This year marks the 30th anniversary of completion of the memorial. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

A Celtic cross hangs with military identification tags, part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection, at a National Park Service museum storehouse in Landover, Md., June 15. Dog tags are among some 400,000 items that have been left at the Washington memorial and cataloged and preserved at the facility. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec Saints’ medals are seen June 15 among the items cataloged and preserved in the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection at a National Park Service museum storehouse in Landover, Md. This one carries the name and image of the Archangel Michael, patron saint o f paratroopers. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

Those items indicate a great deal of pre-planning, but other donations are spontaneous.

“It’s not unusual to see children go through their backpacks and leave whatever the popular toy of the day is,” Felton said.

“Every item is precious,” he added. “It might be a fourth-place karate medal, but for a person to leave it ennobles this offering.”

Religious items -- medals, Bibles, rosaries, crosses and similar articles -- make up a significant part of the collection. Among the

historical collections held at the Museum Resource Center. Others include items from the Antietam National Battlefield Park, the Clara Barton National Historic Site and the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site.

But none of the collections has such strong emotions attached to it as the Vietnam collection does.

Felton, an Army veteran who served in Vietnam in 1967, said he tells new interns, “You have my permission to go outdoors and take a deep breath” when

A Navy chaplain’s shoulder board is pictured with a personal note and cross at the National Park Service museum storehouse in Landover, Md., June 15. The items are part of the sizable Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection. Religious items left at the Wall are among the 400,000 mementos preserved in the collection. CNS photo/Nancy Phelan Wiechec

Page 26 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 27

Death and evil will not have last word, Denver archbishop says

by Nissa LaPoint Catholic News Service AURORA, Colo. (CNS) The confusion and carnage that unfolded in the dark Aurora theater July 20 was surreal for Emily Stetson.

The loud pops she heard and irritating smoke she inhaled eventually forced her and the midnight moviegoers out of the packed theaters inside Century Aurora 16. In the lobby, she witnessed a police officer cradle a child with bloodstained clothes and hurry outside.

She watched the massacre and wondered about the presence of Christ, she said.

“It’s hard to see God in something so sad,” said 21-year-old Stetson, a parishioner at Queen of Peace Church in Aurora. “But how else can you hope to move on if this is all that life is? There’s got to be something better.”

It was at an evening Mass the day of the shooting that Stetson found supportive friends and sympathetic words. She joined a large gathering of faithful who sought healing and answers to the questions in their hearts.

Denver Archbishop Samuel J.

A woman kneels in prayer July 22 at a memorial for victims of a gunman who opened fire on moviegoers in Aurora, Colo. The gunman July 20 killed at least a dozen people and injured many more during a midnight showing of the new Batman movie “The Dark Knig ht Rises.” CNS photo/Rick Wilking, Reuters

Aquila was the main celebrant of the Mass -- joined by 25 deacons and concelebrating priests -- at Queen of Peace for victims and families impacted by the massacre, which claimed lives and wounded dozens.

In his homily, Archbishop Aquila asked the faithful to bring their sorrow to the Lord and open their hearts so that he may give comfort.

“As we present it to our Lord, though it may not be removed immediately, we know that the Lord

is with us in the midst of the suffering,” he said. “Certainly, the love of the father is stronger than the bullets that killed 12 people and wounded (dozens more). And the risen Christ points to that truth.”

Death and evil, he added, will not have the last word.

“We recognize in the resurrection of Jesus Christ that he encountered victory over death,” Archbishop Aquila said. “The Father does not leave his Son dead or his beloved children dead, but rather he calls them home to live with him and he gives to us the promise of eternal life and resurrection.”

With many prayers, the Denver Archdiocese responded to the early morning rampage July 20 that ranks among the worst mass shootings in U.S. history.

A gunman killed 12 people and wounded 58 at a midnight showing of the latest Batman movie, “The Dark Knight Rises.” Police arrested 24-year-old James Holmes as the suspected shooter.

He was in court July 23 for an advisement hearing. A judge ordered he be held without bond at the Arapahoe County Justice Center to await his arraignment.

One of the wounded is a friend of Jo Ann Younger, 15, of Queen of Peace. She and her mother, Juliet, spent hours visiting her 14-year-old friend before the Mass. She said he remains in critical condition at University of Colorado Hospital after suffering wounds to the chest.

“We got to see him, but he could not respond,” Younger told the Denver Catholic Register after the Mass.

They said they went to the Mass

to find peace and understanding.

Once the community learned of the shooting, priests at Aurora parishes responded to requests for help. Father Terry Kissell of St. Michael the Archangel Parish talked to concerned and upset youths who learned some friends were at the Aurora movie theater. Father Mauricio Bermudez of Queen of Peace talked to a distraught 6-yearold child who learned her cousin had died in the theater.

The Denver Archdiocese is offering support for all survivors and family members of victims with counseling and spiritual direction from counselors and priests.

In an invocation at a July 22 prayer service at the Aurora Municipal Center that drew thousands, Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley the “senseless and evil act of violence” at the theater has left many wondering how and why such a tragedy could have happened.

“Questions arise when the everyday securities and certainties of life -- the trust we carry in our fellow human beings, that we can safely go to work each day, or to school, or to the movies, are shaken,” Bishop Conley said at the prayer service.

“It’s natural for us to wonder why does this kind of suffering happen and what does it really mean?

“Let us trust God with our doubts and let us turn to him with continued on page 29

Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila of Denver blesses a woman after a Mass July 20 at Queen of Peace Church in Aurora, Colo.

People gathered for the Mass to mourn the lives lost and families impacted by the shooting at the Aurora movie theater early that morning . A gunman killed 12 people and wounded 58 at a midnight showing of the latest Batman movie, “The Dark Knight Rises.” CNS photo/ James Baca, Denver Catholic Register

Page 28 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Our Lady of the Lake/St. Martin de Porres “Fortnight for Freedom” observation part. This included the Mis-

DELCAMBRE Our Lady of the Lake and St. Martin de Porres Parishes in Delcambre recently hosted an evening of prayer in observation of the “Fortnight for Freedom” celebration. Rites began wtih Mass, which was celebrated at St. Martin de Porres Church, and a Eucharistic procession through the streets of Delcambre. The observance concluded with Eucharistic adoration and Benediction at Our Lady of the Lake Church.

Approximately 80 parishioners and supporters of the “Fortnight for Freedom” took

sionaries of Charity, the Vermilion Parish Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, and the America Needs Fatima Association. Parish organizations that also participated included the St. Anne Altar Society, the St. Martin de Porres Gospel choir, and the Women of Hope.

In addition to this evening of prayer, parish organizations prayed the rosary every weekday throughout the “Fortnight” period. The “Fortnight for Freedom” prayer was also prayed at each Mass during this time.

LAFAYETTE Christ Our King Communications (COKC), a non-profit organization, is working to bring Catholic radio to the Acadiana listening area. KLFT “Catholic Radio for Acadiana” will be broadcasting as an affiliate of EWTN Global Catholic Radio Network.

The radio apostolate is proud to announce the launch of its new website, KLFTradio.com.

“Currently, we are streaming online through our website at KLFTradio.com, on digital TV Channel 50.5, and on our Smartphone apps for Android and Apple,” stated Christine Fourquier, Executive Director of COKC. “The stream is strictly the feed from EWTN, but we will be adding some local programming as we continue to work toward our FM launch date in December of this year.”

In 2011, representatives of COKC and EWTN made a presentation to the Diocese of Lafayette’s Council of Priests, and the Council voted to support the project to bring Catholic radio KLFT to the diocese’s listening area. Bishop Jarrell, in a letter addressed to all pastors and parish life coordinators, asked for their cooperation with the fundraising and awareness efforts of the newly organized Catholic radio station.

KLFT has neither requested

nor received any financial assistance from the diocese. Rather, the radio station is striving to succeed, both financially and in its mission, by developing a large and strong group of committed listeners.

“We began our fundraising efforts in January of this year by making presentations at various parishes throughout the diocese,” said Fourquier. “So far, we have visited 18 parishes, and have received incredibly positive responses, both financially and spiritually.

“People have been praying for a Catholic radio station in our area for years, and are thanking us for doing this for our community. With such a significantly large and generous Catholic population in Acadiana, we have faith that people will financially support the evangelical mission of this radio station.

“Every baptized Christian is endowed with the mission to spread Christ’s message; supporting this radio station is a wonderful opportunity for all of us to answer that call with a ‘yes’.”

To financially contribute to the mission of KLFT, Catholic Radio for Acadiana, please visit KLFTradio.com and click on the “Donate Now” button. Donations may also be mailed to: COKC, P.O. Box 657, Carencro, LA 70520.

Christ Our King Communications announces KLFTradio.com

Above and below: Our Lady of the Lake and St. Martin de Porres Parishes in Delcambre hosted an evening of prayer to conclude the “Fortnight for Freedom” celebration.

Photos submitted by Father Herb Bennerfield

Acadiana Catholic

Young parishioner from Assumption of BVM aims high & succeeds LAFAYETTE Summertime is a time when most young people like to kick back and relax before August rolls around and they have to head back to school. For Josh Castille, however, this past summer was an opportunity to shine, and he took full advantage.

In June, Josh participated in Louisiana Boys State, a program designed to give high school students a hands-on experience with government workings. A senior at Lafayette High School, Josh was nominated for the program by his French teacher, and although he might have had a few doubts about it at first, in the end he certainly made the most of his experience. Since he is partially deaf, Josh had to find a last-minute interpreter who was able to accompany him for the experience, but once that hurdle was cleared, he went on to successfully run for one of the program’s greatest positions, Boys State governor. Josh impressed his peers so much that when he stood to accept his position, he received the “I love you” sign from the entire crowd of more than 400 young gentlemen who participated alongside him in the program.

On the home front, Josh is a parishioner of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Mire. According to Msgr.

Russell Harrington, former pastor of the community, he and his family are very active in the parish. Having received the sacrament of confirmation just

last year, Josh has served as an altar boy and Eucharistic minister in the parish, and also participated in the parish’s youth group at one time. Also, each year for Christmas and Easter, Josh served as a sign interpreter for the liturgy of the Masses at Msgr. Harrington’s request.

As the Boys State governor, Josh will visit several Louisiana schools throughout the upcoming school year, to talk about the program and also help to organize efforts to make the program an equally memorable experience for 2013 participants.

Vocation supper for young men

LAFAYETTE The Lafayette Diocese’s Office of Vocations will host a Vocations Supper for young men on Wednesday, September 5 at Bishop Michael Jarrell’s residence in Lafayette. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.

It is customary that a pastor, deacon, or religious accompany one to two candidates to the Vocation supper. If the candidate is under the age of 18 and is the only candidate being sponsored, a parent or family member over the age of 18 must also accompany the candidate. Space is limited, so early registration is recommended. The deadline to register is Wednesday, August 29. For further details, please contact Father Kevin Bordelon, Director of the Office of Vocations, at (337) 261-5690.

Men’s work days scheduled

ST. MARTINVILLE The Community of Jesus Crucified is recruiting men to help out with chores around Our Lady of Sorrows Retreat Center in St. Martinville on September 1 and October 6. Both days are Saturdays, and each work day is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., although volunteers are encouraged to come and stay for as long as they are able.

Mass will be celebrated at 12:00 noon, and lunch will be provided.

For more details, please contact Vic Guidry at (337) 824-3045 or the Center of Jesus Crucified at (337) 394-6550.

St. Anthony Church dinner

LAFAYETTE St. Anthony Church in Lafayette will host its annual Fall Chicken Dinner and Sweet Shop on Saturday, September 8, from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The event will be held inside the church hall at 615 Edison Street in Lafayette. For further details, please contact the church at (337) 234-5855.

August 2012 Page 29

Aurora tragedy continued from page 27

our fears. Let us ask him for the hope we need to see in the midst of this darkness,” he added.

He urged all to mourn “for those who have perished” and “grieve with their loved ones” and “acknowledge the real evil which has wounded our community,” but also reminded them that God is “the great comforter” and is “truly present to us.”

Solo Miller, of Aurora, said she came to the vigil to show support to her community even though she’s still in denial that the shooting occurred.

“It’s odd that it’s so close to home,” she said.

Others felt the tragedy more severely, like 24-year-old Crystal Miller, whose brother was at the theater the night of the shooting.

Her brother, who worked at the theater, and his friends, escaped Century Aurora 16 unharmed.

“I won’t let my brother out of my sight,” she said, while holding a lighted candle with Jesus’ image on it. “These kids will never be the same.”

Page 30 August 2012

From drug dealer to Catholic monk continued from page 20

it to St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians and read about those who will not make it to be with God: drunkards, fornicators, adulterers.

He identified with every sinner on the list.

However, Father Kraychuk said he still rejected God and religion.

“I don’t want to become a Jesus freak,” he recalled thinking.

But for the next 14 months, things were different.

“It’s like the Lord sent an angel, a spirit that would speak to me,” he said. Every time he was ready to make a drug deal, the spirit would come to remind him his actions were against God’s law.

He took off again, making his way to Florida, then to Eastern Canada, trying to shake what he imagined was depression. Returning to his friends in California the young man became even more involved in drugs and alcohol, so much that he would shake from the chemicals in his body.

“My old buddies said, ‘You’ve got to go or you are going to kill yourself,’” he recalled.

That’s when he hopped the bus to Winnipeg. Between Utah and Idaho, two biker types came onto the bus and went to the back where Father Kraychuk was sitting. They started to talk, sharing their latest adventures with drugs and parties. The conversation then shifted to God and Scripture.

He realized that the same things that had happened to him had happened to one of the bikers.

“It was like looking in a mirror,” Father Kraychuk said.

After the conversation had died down, Father Kraychuk turned around in his seat and as he was sitting down he experienced the beginning of change in his life.

“It was Christ himself. And he said to me, ‘Terry, there are two roads before you. You know where your road is going; you know where it leads. Now I’m offering you my road. You must choose.’”

Father Kraychuk knew then that he had to choose God, pledging “I’ll try to follow you.”

That’s when he dumped the drugs in the toilet.

And then he saw the light.

Acadiana Catholic

Father Lafleur memorial Mass

OPELOUSAS The annual memorial Mass in honor of military chaplain Lt. Father Joseph Verbis Lafleur will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, September 7, at St. Landry Church in Opelousas. Bishop Glen Provost will serve as celebrant, and music will be provided by the Acadian French Choir in honor of Father Lafleur’s first language.

Joseph Verbis Lafleur was born in the Louisiana town of Ville Platte on January 24, 1912. Later, he would move with his family to nearby Opelousas, where he faithfully served as an altar boy at St. Landry Church during his youth; he also celebrated his first Solemn Mass there following his ordination to the priesthood for the Lafayette Diocese in 1938.

He was then assigned to St. Mary Magdalen Church in Abbeville but soon joined the U.S. Army Air Corps and was sent to serve in the Philippine Islands during WW

II shortly thereafter.

During his service, Father Lafleur was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, and Bronze star for his valor. He was taken as a prisoner of war by the Japanese, and on September 7, 1944, he and several hundred other prisoners were killed when the ship upon which they were being transported was torpedoed. Father Lafleur’s body was never recovered, but memories of survivors report that he was last seen aiding others to escape the sinking ship. The year 2012 marks the 68th anniversary of his death.

All are invited and welcome to attend the memorial Mass on September 7.

Fortnight for Freedom Eucharistic Procession

Parishioners of St. Joseph Church in Rayne recdently participated in a Fortnight for Freedom Eucharistic Procession. They processed north on Polk St. while praying the Rosary, stopped at the Depot Square for a rosary decade at the National flag, then processed south on Adams Ave. as they returned to the church. Rayne Police Chief Carroll Stelly and his department provided patrol cars to lead and follow the procession. The first annual event was coordinated by the Knights of Columbus, Council 1897, and participated in by the church organizations and parishioners. Photo by Josie Henry, courtesy of Rayne Acadian-Tribune

Acadiana Catholic

Father Bryce Sibley appointed Director of Aquinas Institute LAFAYETTE Congratulations are extended to Father Bryce Sibley, who was recently appointed Director of the Aquinas Institute for Theology and Catholic Studies. Father Sibley will fill this role while continuing to serve as Pastor of Our Lady of Wisdom Parish in Lafayette.

A native of Lafayette, Father Sibley was ordained to the priesthood for the Lafayette Diocese in the year 2000.

He earned a BA from St. Joseph Seminary College in St. Benedict, LA, and also holds an STL in Marriage and the Family from the Pontifical Lateran University (John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and the Family), as well as an STB in Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

Father Sibley has been a member of the faculty of the Aquinas Institute for Theology and Catholic Studies since its inception in the Lafayette Diocese in 2006. He also taught as a professor at Notre Dame

Seminary in New Orleans in 2007.

T h e Aquinas Institute for TheFr. Bryce Sibley o l o g y and Catholic Studies is a center for adult education which provides a variety of courses in the areas of theology and Catholic studies. Its purpose is to foster a deeper understanding of the faith through the areas of theology and philosophy, with specific emphasis placed on the teachings of St. Thomas Aquinas. Although the institute is not presently an undergraduate degree program, its courses receive academic college credit through Our Lady of Holy Cross College in New Orleans. Funding comes from the tuition of the students who enroll in the offered courses, and from donations.

For further details about the Aquinas Institute for Theology and Catholic Studies in the Lafayette Diocese, please visit www.diolaf.org and enter “Aquinas Institute” into the search box located near the upper right corner of the page.

“Better to illuminate than merely to shine, to deliver to others contemplated truths than merely to contemplate.”

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LifeSkills workshops

CROWLEY A series of three LifeSkills training workshops for parents are scheduled to be offered in the parish of St. Michael the Archangel parish hall. An exact time has not yet been determined; however, the three sessions will be held on three consecutive Tuesdays in September (11, 18, 25).

LifeSkills is designed to help parents strengthen their communications with their children, while also teaching them skills to help them resist peer pressures such as drug and tobacco use and violence. By providing their children with tools such as these, parents are preparing them for a successful transition from adolescence into early adulthood.

Attending any one of these upcoming LifeSkills sessions may count as a 2012 Continuing Education credit for the Lafayette Diocese’s Safe Environment for Children program. Further details will be released at a later date, or those who are interested may contact Janeth Harrington by telephone at (337) 258-0073 or email at jharrington@diolaf.org.

August 2012 Page 31

Spirituality retreat

RYNELLA St. Marcellus Church in Rynella will host “A Call to Deeper Living: Slowing Down Our Busy Lives” on Saturday, September 22, from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. The cost is $10 per person, with registration to begin at 9:00 a.m., and participants are encouraged to attend Mass at 4:00 p.m.

The retreat is sponsored by the Regional Pastoral Council of the South Region, Diocese of Lafayette.

Speakers will be local spiritual directors and retreat leaders Robin and Easton Hebert. Easton is an adjunct director at the Jesuit Spirituality Center in Grand Coteau, and Robin serves at Our Lady of Wisdom Church and Catholic Student Center on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus as marriage ministry coordinator. She has co-authored two books on spirituality: When Women Pray and When Wisdom Speaks.

For further information, contact: Angela Boudreaux at (337) 380-6989 or Deacon Jerry Bourg at (337) 578-2423. Registration forms are available at local church parish offices. Look for notices in your weekly church bulletins beginning in September.

Page 32 August 2012

“BE FIRE!”

By Graham N. Smith

I know that summer’s fading fast, but there’s still time to grab a good book before we’re back in the regular fall routine. Boy, have I got one for you!

Personally, I’m given to spy stories and detective novels – things that have some adventure and mystery. Well, the book I’ve got in mind doesn’t involve spies or detectives, but it’s got lots of mystery and it promises adventure in abundance!

It’s short – a little over 100 pages, but crammed with wonderful writing. A good bit of it comes from some of the best Catholic authors around, including John Paul II and Benedict XVI, who give us a really good look at the “holy fire” that shaped their ministries and can be lighting us up as well.

This book is “Baptism in the Holy Spirit,” just published by the International

Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services (ICCRS) Doctrinal Commission. It’s the work of a colloquium held last year in Rome on the baptism in the Holy Spirit that drew participants from all over the world.

As you’d probably guess from the fact that the ICCRS Doctrinal Commission convened this gathering, the book includes sections on how the baptism in the Holy Spirit relates to Church doctrine and the sacraments, but it’s far more than that.

Blessed Elena Guerra wrote a series of confidential letters to Pope Leo XIII around the turn of the 20th century urging him to renew a focus on the Holy Spirit. She recognized that the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives as followers of Jesus Christ is crucial. In one letter, she told the Pope, “Preachers praise all the Saints, but when do we ever hear a sermon in honor of the Holy Spirit, He who shapes the Saints?”

That’s exactly what Jesus had in mind when He told his followers to wait in Jerusalem until the “promise of the Father” came upon them. He said, “You will receiver power when the Holy Spirit comes

upon you,” and that they would be His witnesses to the “ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:4, 1:8) That’s why in this book you’ll read Pope Benedict XVI urging us to share that experience with those folks who were in the Upper Room when Pentecost came: “Let us rediscover, dear brothers and sisters, the beauty of being baptized in the Holy Spirit; let us be aware again of our baptism and of our confirmation, sources of grace that are always present. Let us ask the Virgin Mary to obtain for us a renewed Pentecost for the Church again today, a Pentecost that will spread in everyone the joy of living and witnessing to the Gospel!”

There are a great many gifts of the Holy Spirit. For instance, check the list in 1 Cor. 12: 4-10, and take a look at the “Isaian” gifts in Isaiah 11:2.

The authors of this book acknowledge that not every gift of the Spirit (sometimes called “charisms”) is for every Christian, but they make it clear that baptism in the Holy Spirit isn’t just for the folks in the Charismatic Renewal. It’s “for all the baptized, insofar as it is an enlivening grace of sacramental

Acadiana Catholic baptism and confirmation.”

Every Catholic who’s been baptized has received the Holy Spirit, but we have to say “yes” to having the Holy Spirit activate His gifts in our daily lives (not just in our worship!) That’s really what being “baptized in the Holy Spirit” does.

Papal preacher Fr. Raneiro Cantalamessa has often said that what happened at Pentecost was a powerful encounter with God’s love. Love is God’s fundamental nature. (1 Jn. 4:8) The authors of this book underscore that point, writing, “To be baptized in the Holy Spirit is to be filled with the Love that eternally flows between the Father and the Son in the Holy Trinity, a love that changes people at their deepest level and makes them capable of loving God in return.”

There lies mystery! There lies adventure! We need that Pentecost encounter now, more than ever!

Grab “Baptism in the Holy Spirit.” It’ll probably be in bookstores eventually, but for now you can get it online at chariscenter@nsc-chariscenter.org. You won’t be sorry!

ATTENTION SUBSCRIBERS Moved recently? Don’t forget to call (337) 261-5650 to report your change of address so you can continue to received the Acadiana Catholic.

Pilgrims on the Way will usher in Year of Faith

LAFAYETTE Father Howard Blessing will be the guest speaker at the Pilgrims on the Way Christian men’s group as they usher in the Year of Faith.

The meeting will be held from 7:008:30 a.m. on September 8, inside the Grace meeting room (Building A) of Holy Cross Church in Lafayette.

The group will continue to meet every second Sat-

urday of each month. They will be viewing Father Robert Barron’s 10-part DVD series on Catholicism as they also reflect on scripture and share their faith.

Men who are interested in joining this group of men to share a spiritual journey should contact John Schexnaildre at (337) 654-9671 (adultfaith@holycrosslafayette.com) or Shane Thibodeaux at (337) 258-6377 (ssthib599@ cox.net).

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 33

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Acadiana Catholic

Catholics need help experiencing interactive prayer, magazine says

by Cindy Wooden of Jesus begins by asking the Catholic News Service reader to “see with the imagiVATICAN CITY (CNS) nation the road from NazaThe church must offer peoreth to Bethlehem, considerple -- especially the young -ing the length and breadth of a spirituality that responds to it, whether it is a flat road or their computer-driven desire goes through valleys or over for interactive experiences, hills; and similarly to look at said an influential Jesuit magathe place of the Nativity, to see zine. how big or small it is, how low The Italian magazine, La or high, and what is in it.”

Civilta Cattolica, said the The reader is asked to look church does not have to invent around the cave or grotto and a new spirituality for a new see who is there and then to generation. It just has to recogimagine himself or herself in nize that because of intensive the scene as well, watching, computer and social network use people have changed, so the church must change the way it offers its spiritual treasures.

The key, the magazine said, is to help people take the step from superficial interaction -- “surfing the net” A teenager is seen using an iPad in St. Louis in March. Finding ways and clicking for the church to offer its spiritual treasures in an interactive world is on link af- the subject of an article in an influential Italian Catholic magazine.

CNS file/Lisa Johnston, St. Louis Review ter link -- to listening and helping, if poscontemplation. sible.

First, people must recognize In the exercises, the magathe need “to safeguard spaces zine said, the person praying that allow interiorization to imagines being in the biblical develop.” That means a bit of scene, shares the emotions of silence and being out of arm’s those present and tries to relive reach of the computer or smartthe mystery, “interacting with phone, the magazine said. the personalities and the enviBut the church also must ofronment.” fer Catholics ideas of what to Through the use of prayerdo with that quiet time, and the ful imagination, the Bible bemagazine started with somecomes a “virtual reality” for thing its Jesuit staff knows the reader, it said. How deep something about: the Spiritual the experience is depends on Exercises of St. Ignatius, the “the intensity of the relationfounder of the Jesuits whose ships and interactions that are feast is July 31. created during the contemplaThe exercises, it said, offer a tion.” systematic formula for helping The church needs to help someone take the already-inpeople “learn to live their spiriteractive experience of reading tuality interacting and immersto a new level. ing themselves in the word of For example, its suggestion God,” the magazine said. for contemplating the birth

August 2012 Page 35

Congratulations Congratulations to the following church parishes for having recently reached and exceeded their fundraising goals for the 20112012 Bishop’s Services Appeal campaign: Parish Pastor % of Goal Met Sacred Heart

Fr. Lawrence Abara 169.4 (Butte LaRose) St. Mary Magdalen Fr. William Blanda 109.8 (Abbeville) St. Elizabeth Chapel Fr. Joseph Padinjarepeedika 108.7 (Coteau Holmes) St. Genevieve

Fr. Curtis Mallet

104.0 (Lafayette) Sacred Heart

Fr. Joshua Guillory 103.7 (Belarie Cove) Immaculate Conception Fr. Albert Nunez

102.8 (Washington) St. Peter

Fr. Charles Langlois 102.3 (New Iberia) Our Lady Queen of All Saints Fr. Mitchell Guidry 101.4 (Ville Platte) Immaculate Heart of Mary Fr. Thomas James, SVD 101.2 (Lafayette) St. Thomas More

Fr. Cedric Sonnier 100.9 (Eunice) St. Alphonsus

Fr. Joe Breaux

100.9 (Maurice) St. Peter

Fr. Jason Vidrine

100.2 (Gueydan)

Page 36 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Priest urges Catholic Daughters to be living signs of an active faith

by Lisa Maxson Catholic News Service OMAHA, Neb. (CNS) “Would I know from walking in the elevator with you or sitting next to you in a restaurant that you’re in love with your Roman Catholic faith?”

That was a question Father Jim Sichko, pastor of St. Mark Parish in Richmond, Ky., asked more than 1,000 women in his speech opening the July 1821 Catholic Daughters of the Americas’ 54th Biennial National Convention in Omaha.

“Would I know that you’re a devoted member of not only our faith, but women of the Catholic Daughters of the Americas?” said Father Sichko, chaplain of the Catholic Daughters Court St. Anne No. 2568 in Lexington, Ky. As a boy growing up in Orange, Texas, the priest said, he met members of the Catholic Daughters who were “good and holy women” -- living signs of an active faith.

He encouraged those at the conference to be similar role models.

To live as a model Catholic Daughter, one must be rooted in God’s grace, love and faith, show gratitude and stay focused on Jesus and the Eucharist, he said. Catholic Daughters should share the message of Jesus with enthusiasm, be willing to do difficult things at the service of others and the church and not depend on others’ approval, he said.

“It’s about reaching out, believing and trusting. It’s allowing that energy and love of Christ to go forth,” Father Sichko said. “People want the truth. If you’re going to call yourself a Catholic, be Catholic. If you’re going to call yourself a Catholic Daughter, be a Catholic Daughter. Rejoice in it and be happy about it and love it.”

One of the oldest and largest organizations of Catholic women in North and South America, the Catholic Daughters serves the church through religious, charitable and educational ministries, and members practice the principles of unity and charity. The group has 76,000 dues-paying members in more than 1,400 courts in 45 states and Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.

Father Sichko, a former Broadway performer, ended his talk by singing “Only in God,”

by John Michael Talbot, reminding the women that living a fully Catholic life is difficult, but God is with them.

“No matter what, our God is with us and loves us,” he said.

On July 19, National Regent Joanne Tomassi, of St. Pete Beach, Fla., introduced this year’s Catholic Woman of the Year -- Sister Rosemary Connelly, executive director of Misericordia Heart of Mercy in the Chicago. Misericordia is a residence and community for more than 500 children and

adults with mild to profound developmental disabilities.

The award honored Sister Rosemary for “bringing the light of Christ to others” and included a $5,000 check for Misericordia.

During the convention, Tomassi also announced other monetary awards from the Catholic Daughters: Holy Cross Family Ministries in Easton, Mass., $30,000; the Pontifical North American College in Rome, $17,000; Catholic Relief Services, $8,000; Support Our Aging Religious, or SOAR, $9,000; Covenant House, $6,000; Missionaries of Charity, $12,000; Tutwiler Clinic in Mississippi, $12,000; Smile Train, $51,000; and the Laboure Society, which fosters priestly and religious vocations through student-loan resolution, $2,900.

Patrick Fagan of MARRI, which stands for Marriage and Religion Research Institute, addressed the delegates on the last day of the convention.

He used sociological research to support his belief that the marriage relationship founded on the love of God is key to a healthy society and successful economy. Chastity, he said, is the foundational virtue of all of society. He concluded, “I think your grandchildren are calling on you to grow the intact young family that will worship God weekly.”

In one resolution passed at the convention, the Catholic

Daughters took aim at human trafficking and agreed to adopt a campaign to promote the purchase of fair-trade items and asked members who can do so to download to their smartphones the Free2Work app, which can scan an item and tell if it was made by slave labor.

“Human-trafficking and slave labor is rampant throughout the world,” including in the United States, the resolution said, adding that products sold in the U.S. are often made in factories where women, children and some men “are forced to work long hours for little or no pay.”

“The power of the consumer will make a strong impact on these practices,” it said, adding that members were urged to contact their elected officials to enact laws that prohibit using women and children as “objects of the economy rather than subjects of the economy.”

Catholic Daughters also approved a resolution calling for prayers for the canonization cause of Father Stanley F. Rother, a priest of the Oklahoma City Archdiocese who was brutally murdered in 1981 in the Guatemalan village where he ministered to the poor.

He was “martyred ... for his extraordinary and courageous defense” of his faith, the resolution said, and he “displayed the virtues of unity and charity while teaching, working with and ministering” among the villagers.

Acadiana Catholic

Lord Teach Me To Pray facilitator training ABBEVILLE Beginning on Friday, August 24, Our Lady of the Bayous Retreat Center in Abbeville will host a facilitator training retreat for Part 1 of Lord Teach Me to Pray (LTMTP), an Ignatian prayer series for women and men. The retreat will conclude by 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 25.

The Lord Teach Me To Pray series was reviewed by and received approval from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Publishing Office after being deemed by the Conference’s Subcommittee on the Catechism to be fully consistent with Catholic teaching. Mrs. Carol Weiler, Director of the LTMTP Series and Father Marty Gleeson, O.P. Spiritual Advisor to LTMTP will conduct the training. There is no charge for the Training Retreat itself or for the materials that will be provided; however, a free will offering will be taken up to help Our Lady of the Bayous with the retreat house expenses. To register, or for more information about the Training Retreat, contact Bonnie at (337) 237-0667 or David at (337) 6526450 or send an email to retreats. fmcmissions@gmail.com.

This opportunity is open to both men and women in good standing with the Catholic Church, who would like to become a trained facilitator for Part 1 of the LTMTP series (Praying Christian Virtues); or to those who would like to discern if God

may be calling them to become a trained facilitator; or to those who simply want to find out more about Ignatian prayers and the LTMTP prayer series. The training will be conducted in a discernment atmosphere and in a retreat setting.

Unlike bible studies or other adult formation programs, this series is designed to help women and men learn how to pray. It is based upon the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola who is the founder of the Society of Jesus.

The spirituality of St. Ignatius and his Spiritual Exercises has been used for centuries to develop the spirituality of many great saints. The entire series is broken up into three consecutive parts that must be completed in sequential order.

The prayer sessions themselves are conducted in a group experience of approximately twelve participants with the assistance of trained facilitators.

The group meets once a week for two hours. Each meeting consists of an opening prayer, a time for personal faith sharing on the week’s scriptures prayed, and information on Ignatian prayer and an aspect of Church teaching.

Participants are given Scripture passages to use each day for personal prayer at home throughout the week.

For more information about the Lord Teach Me To Pray series, go online to www.lordteachmetopray.com.

August 2012 Page 37

Fortnight for Freedom at Our Lady Queen of Angels

OPELOUSAS Our Lady Queen of Angels Church in Opelousas participated in the Fortnight for Freedom, a national campaign designated by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for the purpose of teaching and being a witness in support of religious liberty.

Msgr. Keith J. DeRouen, pastor, reported that the prayer meetings were held each evening from June 21st through July 4th in the church hall. Anywhere from 100 to 200 people from the commu-

nity joined together each night.

They began with recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance before listening to reflections and readings taken from the Vatican II document Declaration on Religious Liberty, and praying the Litany for Liberty. They concluded with the singing of “God Bless America”.

There was a different facilitator for each night leading the program. On the final evening, a rosary was also recited with two decades being prayed in French.

Msgr. Keith J. DeRouen led the congregation in the singing of “God Bless America” at the Fortnight for Freedom held at Our Lady Queen of Angels Church parish in Opelousas. The night’s facilitator, Oliver J. “Buster” LeBlanc, joined in. Photo submitted by Kathy Hebert

 

 

         

   

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Acadiana Catholic

Catholic Bible Study for the beginner LAFAYETTE St. Pius X Church in Lafayette will present The Great Adventure Bible Study Course (sometimes called “The Bible Timeline”) beginning on Thursday, August 16.

The study will take place each Thursday from 9:00-11:00 a.m. in Conference Room A; there will be a break the week before Thanksgiving, with meetings to resume after the first of the year 2013 and conclude just before Holy Week. To register, please contact the St. Pius X office at (337) 232-4656, or contact Don Berkowicz (facilitator) at (337) 706-7989 or email at donberkowicz@cox.net.

On August 22, a 24-233k bible study class will begin on the Gospel of Matthew. The class, which will be held at St. Pius X Elementary School library, will be held from 6:30-8:15 p.m. each Wednesday. Those who are interested should contact Angela King by telephone at (337) 9880767 or email at angelaking2@ cox.net.

Beginning on September 4, St. Pius X Church will also host a study of the Acts of the Apostles, also part of The Great Ad-

venture Bible Study series. Acts of the Apostles shows the works of Christ continuing beyond His resurrection as He empowers believers through the Holy Spirit to be His hands and feet to spread the Good News, spanning a period of 30 years. This study will allow participants to accompany the early Christians as they “turned the world upside down.” The study will be held in the St. Pius X Elementary School library, 205 E. Bayou Parkway, September 4-November 6 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. For questions and to register for the course contact Teresa Margaglio by email at teresa315@lusfiber. net.

An 11-week study focused on the Letter of James will begin on September 9, with classes to meet every Sunday evening from 6:00-7:15 p.m. at St. Pius X Bayou House. Those who are interested should contact Angela King by telephone at (337) 9880767 or email at angelaking2@ cox.net.

A $30 donation is requested for all offered classes in order to help cover the cost of study materials.

Great Adventure Bible Study continues LAFAYETTE This fall, Holy Cross Church in Lafayette will offer four different studies from the Great Adventure Bible Study. The Great Adventure is a fascinating study that takes one on a journey through the bible by going deep into each period of salvation history and discover the amazing story woven throughout all of Scripture. Using a unique color-coded system, one will learn the major people, places, and events of the bible and see how they all come together to reveal the remarkable story of faith. The study consists of a series of DVD’s presented

by Jeff Cavins, with workbooks to accompany the DVD’s.

Beginning on Wednesday, September 5, Debra Carroll will facilitate a 24-week study of the Gospel of Matthew from 6:308:30 p.m. each Wednesday in the Wisdom Meeting Room, building D. Beginning on Tuesday, August

14, Don Berkowicz will facilitate a 24-week study on the Book of Acts. Mr. Berkowicz will also facilitate a 20-week Great Adventure Study of the Gospel of Matthew beginning on Wednesday, August 15. (This study will be the same as the one offered by Ms. Carroll, only with a different starting date and meeting times).

The study will be conducted every Tuesday from 9:30-11:30 a.m. in the Grace Meeting Room in Administration Building A. Beginning on Thursday, September 6, Maureen Lorentz will facilitate a 24-week Great Adventure Bible Timeline from 6:308:00 p.m. every Thursday in the Wisdom Meeting Room.

The cost of the workbooks for the studies is $40 each. To register, please call the Holy Cross office at (337) 984-9636 or Adult Faith Formation at (337) 6549671. Registration may also be completed online at www.holycrosslafayette.com.

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 39

Page 40 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

St. Mary Magdalen Church seals time capsule

ABBEVILLE As part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the current church structure of St. Mary Magdalen Church held on November 20, 2011, a time capsule that was placed in the cornerstone of the church in 1911 was opened. Since that time, a new time capsule has been placed in the cornerstone, containing objects relevant to the year 2011.

These items are as follows: • Copy of Bishop Provost’s homily from the 100th anniversary Mass celebration held on November 20, 2011.

Chad Frederick of Menard’s Marble and Granite Company is shown placing St. Mary Magdalen’s time capsule into the cornerstone of the church building.

Photo submitted by St. Mary Magdalen Parish

• Centennial Club member names: individuals & families who donated at least $100.00 to the Capitol Campaign to complete this fundraising effort.

• Pictures of church renovations, including a photo of scaffolding around the steeple and a photo of the sanctuary and baldacchino from the Phase 1 and Phase 2 or the process • Copy of the Abbeville Meridional from November 20, 2011, which included a newspaper article regarding the 100th anniversary celebration events • Vermilion Catholic School senior letters in a sealed envelope; these letters explain what it meant to be VC a highschool student in the year 2011.

• Architect Gene Sellers business card (architect responsible for the 2010 church renovations) • Set of gold and silver coins of 2011 donated by Gulf Coast Bank St. Mary Magdalen Parish is proud of its accomplishments in this most current restoration proj-

From left to right, Patrick Ashley, Fr. William C. Blanda (Pastor), Chad Frederick stand in front of the completed cornerstone. Photo submitted by St. Mary Magdalen Parish

ect. There was a great amount of interest in the items that were placed in the time capsule from 1911. Hopefully, those individu-

als in the year 2111 will be just as interested in the items that will be considered historical from the 2011 celebration.

St. Genevieve School names Cardinals of the Year

LAFAYETTE St. Genevieve School is pleased to name Elizabeth Heintz, Cody Stelly, and Madison Guidry the Cardinals of the Year for the 2011-2012 school year.

T h i s middle campus award, in honor of the s c h o o l ’s mascot, is made to Mrs. Champagne and recognize eighth grader Elizabeth those stuHeintz. Photo submitted dents who

by St. Genevieve School

Pictured Left to Right: Madison Guidry, sixth grade, Mrs. Champagne, Principal, and Cody Stelly, seventh grade. Photo submitted by St. Genevieve School

show compassion, kindness, generosity and tolerance. This highly respected and coveted honor is only awarded to one student per grade level in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades.

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 41

Bishops welcome inclusion of conscience provisions in house appropriations bill

USCCB WASHINGTON The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor/HHS “took a first, urgently needed step toward upholding rights of conscience and religious freedom in our health care system,� by including two key provisions in its appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2013, according to the chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston welcomed the inclusion of the Abortion Non-Discrimination Act (ANDA, HR 361) and the policy of the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act (HR 1179) in the appropriations bill, July 18, saying it will “strengthen federal protections for health care providers who decline to take part in abortions, and will ensure that the Affordable Care Act allows Americans to purchase health coverage without being forced to abandon their deeply held religious and moral convictions on matters such as abortion and sterilization.�

Cardinal DiNardo expressed gratitude to subcommittee chairman Representative Denny Rehberg (R-MT) for his leadership in sponsoring the conscience provisions when he introduced this bill, adding, “The Catholic community and many others concerned about religious freedom will work hard to ensure that these protections are enacted into law.�The Labor/HHS bill must be approved by the full House Appropriations Committee, then the House of Representatives, before it can be sent to the Senate for further action.

In a July 17 letter, Cardinal DiNardo had urged the subcommittee to include both provisions in the appropriations bill.

ANDA, he wrote, would codify the Hyde/Weldon amendment, a longstanding part of this appropriations bill that prevents government discrimination against health care providers who decline participation in abortion. “Instances of discrimination against pro-life health care providers continue to emerge, and some states implementing the

Affordable Care Act have begun to claim that they can force all private health plans on their exchanges to cover elective abortion as an ‘essential health benefit,’� Cardinal DiNardo wrote. “By closing loopholes and providing victims of discrimination with a ‘private right of action’ to defend their rights in court, Sec. 538 will provide urgently needed relief.�

Cardinal DiNardo said the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act, which is sponsored by 224 House members and supported by nearly half the Senate, should be incorporated into the bill to counter “the most direct federal threat to religious freedom in recent memory� – the HHS mandate for all private health plans, even those

sponsored by most religious organizations, to include sterilization and contraceptives, including drugs that can cause an early abortion. He added that this provision leaves in place all existing legal protections against discriminatory withholding of health care, only allowing “an opt-out on moral or religious grounds from the new benefits mandates to be created for the first time by the Affordable Care Act itself.�

The full text of Cardinal DiNardo’s letter is available online: www.usccb.org/issuesand-action/religious-liberty/ conscience-protection/upload/ Cardinal-DiNardo-July-2012Letter-to-House-Subcomm-onLabor-HHS-Re-ConscienceProtection.pdf

“Rejoice in the Lord Always�

Certified Recognition Masters www.awardmaster.com

Sts. Leo-Seton School in Lafayette recognized its departing 2011-2012 eighth graders with a candle ceremony following this past school year’s closing Mass. After thanking them for being this year’s leaders, kindergarten students presented the eighth graders with a candle encouraging them to use it to go out and light the world with the light of Jesus. The student body is pictured extending a blessing onto this year’s departing eighth graders while reminding them to “Rejoice in the Lord Always.� Photo submitted

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Page 42 August 2012

Obituary: Deacon Kenneth P. Waguespack

NEW IBERIA A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for Deacon Kenneth P. Waguespack, Sr., age 83, on Friday, July 13, 2012 at St. Peter Catholic Church. Fr. Charles Langlois celebrated the Mass, along with concelebrants Fr. Herb Bennerfield, Fr. Gary Schexnayder, Fr. Ed Degeyter, Fr. Jude Halphen, Fr. Buddy Breaux, and Fr. Paul Oneugbe, and with the permanent Diaconate. Deacon Waguespack was laid to rest at Holy Family Mausoleum.

Kenneth Paul Jerome Waguespack, Sr. was born July 19, 1928 to Joseph Waguespack, II and Elaine Dupre’ Waguespack in Grand Caillou, LA near Houma. Deacon Ken was a retired Army Major and proudly served his country for over 20 years.

He was a Deacon of the Diocese of Lafayette for 32 years and served many parishes in Acadiana. He was also an owner and partner of DJW Insurance in New Iberia. Deacon Ken also served as administrator in both the Mt. Carmel and Catholic High expansion projects as well as serving in many civic organizations.

Survivors include his wife of 61 years, Emma Louise Babineaux Waguespack of New Iberia; 8 children, Kenneth Waguespack, Jr. and wife Geri of Harvey, Michael Weber and husband Jerome of New Iberia, Andre’ Waguespack of Metairie, Monique Derouen of New Iberia, Joseph Waguespack, III and wife

Tammy of New Iberia, Julie’ Spedale and husband Thomas of Broussard, Nicole Escuriex and husband Michael of Ft. Polk, and Marcelle Boudreaux of New Iberia; 28 grandchildren; 14 great grandchildren; his nieces and nephews whom he raised as his own children, Sheryl Babineaux of Mandeville, Marc Babineaux and wife Tammy of Arlington, TX, Tommy Babineaux and wife Brenda of New Iberia, Danny Babineaux of New Iberia, Dale Babineaux and wife Jane of DeRidder, Jeanne Elmer and husband Walter of New Iberia; his sister, Frances Barre’ of Covington; and his brother, Deacon Eugene Waguespack and wife Laura of Lafayette.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph Waguespack, II and Elaine Dupre’ Waguespack; and a nephew, Charles Babineaux, Jr. The family would like to thank Hospice of Acadiana and Consolata Nursing Home for the love and compassionate care for Deacon Ken.

Obituary: Mildred Mouton Cross

GLENDALE, CA A Mass of Christian Burial for Mildred “Susie” Mouton Cross, 79, was offered at the Church of the Incarnation in Glendale, CA. Mrs. Cross died suddenly at her home on June 15.

A native of Lafayette, she was a freqent visitor here and taught in Lafayette parish schools for a short time before her marriage.

She was a graduate of the Academy and College of the Sacred Heart, Grand Coteau. She was active in her church parish as a Eucharistic minister and member of the Equestrian Order of

the Holy Sepulchre.

She is survived by her husband of 55 years, Richard J. “Dick” Cross and three children, John C. Cross, Mrs Michael (Carolyn) Suttle, and Paul A. Cross, four grandchildren; and one sister, Sr. Carolyn Moutonof the Religious of the Sacred Heart, Atherton, CA. Several nephews of Lafayette also survive.

She was preceded in death by her parents, F.Xavier and Mildred Bechet Mouton; F. Fred Mouton, and Msgr. Charles Burton Mouton, all of Lafayette.

Memorials may be addressed to the Academy of the Sacred Heart, 1821 Academy Road, Grand Coteau, LA 70541.

Obituary: Father Robert Rimes, S.J.

MOBILE, AL. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for Father Robert Rimes, S.J., 89, who died here May 30. A native of Monroe, LA, he had been a member of the Society of Jesus for 70 years.

His ministries included novice master at Grand Coteau,La., teacher at Strake Jesuit College Preparatory, Houston, TX, rector of the Jesuit community, Spring Hill College,AL. He also helped pastor St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Grand Coteau, and was Vicar for Religious of the Archdiocese of Mobile, AL. He entered the Society on August 14, 1942 after attending Spring HIll College.

KPC Juniors brown bag project

LAFAYETTE The Knights of Peter Claver Junior Clavers of Acadiana District IV will gather at the

Acadiana Catholic Robicheaux Center in Lafayette on Saturday, September 15 for the annual Brown Bag project. The Brown Bag project is a nationwide endeavor in which all junior courts and councils come together to donate items on behalf of local shelters. This year, the collection will target the need for cleaning supplies, toiletries, and towels.

Local participating churches in this year’s project include St. Benedict de Moor and St. Theresa in Crowley; St. Rose of Lima in Cecilia; Immaculate Heart of Mary, Our Lady Queen of Peace, St. Anthony, and St. Paul in Lafayette; Our Lady of Assumption in Carencro; and Our Mother of Mercy in Rayne. All donations will be distributed to The Faith House in Lafayette and The Assist Agency Women’s Shelter in Crowley.

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 43

Emily Byers becomes Lafayette Diocese’s second consecrated virgin LAFAYETTE In a special ceremony held at Lafayette’s Our Lady of Fatima Church in mid-June, Emily Byers became a consecrated virgin living in the world. The Rite of Consecration was celebrated by Bishop Michael Jarrell, and began with the Calling of the Candidate, in which he invited Miss

In the Calling of the Candidate, Bishop Jarrell invited Emily Byers to enter the sanctuary of the church carrying a lit candle, symbolic of her commitment to follow Christ the Bridegroom in purity and chastity. Photo by Shannon S. Denton

Byers to enter the sanctuary carrying a lit candle, calling to mind the parable of the 10 wise virigins (Mt. 25:1-13). As part of the Rite of Consecration, this also symbolized Miss Byers’ commitment to follow Christ the Bridegroom in purity and chastity. The candle was placed on the altar dedicated to Mary.

Later in the ceremony, Miss Byers knelt in the sanctuary of the church as Bishop Jarrell prayed the Prayer of Consecration of a Virgin. This solemn and beautiful prayer, which marked

Miss Byers kneels in the sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima Church as Bishop Jarrell prayed the Prayer of Consecration of a Virgin. Photo by Shannon S. Denton

the central moment of the Rite of Consecration is believed to be more than 1,500 years old.

Emily Byers is the daughter of Rickey and Judi Byers, and is the second woman in the Lafayette Diocese to receive the Consecration of a Virgin Living in the World.

To learn more about the vocation of a consecrated virgin, please go online to www.consecratedvirgins.org.

Emily Byers (left) is shown during the Opening Prayer of her Mass of Consecration to a Life of Virginity at Our Lady of Fatima Church. She was accompanied by her attendant, Anne Christian Heinen (right), who became the diocese’s first consecrated virgin earlier this year. Photo by Shannon S. Denton

“Food for the Journey” eight-year anniversary

LAFAYETTE On Tuesday, September 4, the Central Region of the Lafayette Diocese will sponsor its monthly gathering of “Food for the Journey” at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Lafayette. An optional buffet lunch will be served beginning at 11:30 a.m., at the cost of $12 per person. The presentation is scheduled for 12:10-12:45 p.m. and will be made by Father Michael Champagne, CJC. “Food for the Journey” is a lunchtime speaker series designed to help Catholics live out their faith in their daily lives. At the September 4 meeting, those gathered will also celebrate the eighth anniversary of the program, which has featured a priest as its guest speaker each month during that time.

“This program,” says Father Thomas James, SVD, VE, Vicar for the Central Region, “is sig-

nificant in the Central Region.

People are hungry to learn more about our faith, and they come to be fed. ‘Food for the Journey’ feeds them spiritually, and it also helps build relationships rooted in faith. For us, this program is special.”

All are welcome for this special anniversary celebration – come “eat and be fed”. Pre-registration is not required. For more information, please call Mary Bergeron at (337) 654-8682 or visit www. centralregiononline.org.

Father Michael Champagne, CJC, will be the guest speaker at the September 4 gathering of “Food for the Journey” at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Lafayette.

Page 44 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

Father Sensat says “share the faith”

by Kathleen Toups LAFAYETTE “Share the faith,” Father Clinton Sensat exhorted those attending the July program for Food for the Journey. Father Sensat, who is home for the summer from graduate studies in Washington, DC, emphasized this theme in a number of ways in his presentation.

“We have a duty to read the signs of the times,” he pointed out, “In the course of my studies in Washington, I get a sense that . . . .a change of culture is pushing against the Church, she is under great stress from within and without. Throughout the western world there is increasing hostility toward Christianity. Something different is happening, something new is about to begin.

“Two thousand years ago, in the midst of the great rejection of the Gospel by the Jewish people and after the crucifixion, when all seemed lost, the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles. They went forth filled

with the Spirit of God and proclaimed the truth of Jesus Christ everywhere they spoke. Thousands were converted. Just when it seemed the Gospel was dead, the Gospel sprang to life,” Father Sensat recalled.

“Fifty years ago, Blessed John XXIII announced the Second Vatican Council would bring a new Pentecost. I believe that has been the case.

With ever new Pentecost comes a new evangelization, something talked about by Pope Paul VI, Blessed John Paul II and now I firmly believe by Pope Benedict XVI. “It is no surprise he has declared the 50th anniversary of the Vatican council as a Year of Faith. It is no surprise he has created a secretariat for the new evangelization. It is no surprise when everything looks bleak, there is something alive, something about to break through in the Church of God. “It is a time of great hope, great growth, great vibrancy, even as we admit baptisms are

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Father Clinto Sensat (right) was the speaker at the July meeting of “Food for the Journey.” He is pictured with Very Rev. Thomas James, VE, SVD (left). Photo submitted

by Mary Bergeron

down and people are leaving the church, we feel the call for evangelization,” Father Sensat pointed out.

“Theologians have a definition of faith: it is the belief in things which God has revealed and the Church has proposed. I like this definition of faith because it means a relationship with the living God. I don’t have faith because I grew up in south Louisiana, I don’t have faith because I have a set of opinions. I have faith because God has spoken and I have listened. Faith is not my impact on the world, faith is my submission to the word of God. How useful that is--it connects us to God like faith, hope and love.

“It is very true by faith we are saved. We need to look at our hearts and ask ‘do we have faith?’ Faith is our submission to the word of God,” he repeated, “God has spoken, do we try to understand what He has

said?” Father Sensat asked.

Father Sensat pointed out “there are many beautiful programs in the diocese” to be better informed about our faith.

“The Aquinas Institute, Come Lord Jesus, numerous Bible study classes, Food for the Journey. Do we participate? If not, why not, what excuse do we give...we need to do better, to be serious about learning God’s word so that we do not conform to the world.”

Father Sensat also pointed out the many opportunities to study the word, opportunities the Church has never known before. “In this information age,” he said, “think of the Internet, Google, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Compendium to the Catechism.

What have we done to learn the lessons which should dominate our lives so we can conform to our faith? Knowledge passes through holiness and become wisdom.”

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 45

Black Catholics’ faith, ties to church are strong, says researcher

by Mary Ann Garber Catholic News Service INDIANAPOLIS (CNS) Black Catholics are more engaged in their faith than their white counterparts, according to a historic national survey conducted by two University of Notre Dame professors in 2011.

It also found that culture and faith are closely integrated in the African-American community.

Donald Pope-Davis, a sociologist and one of the researchers, told National Black Catholic Congress XI participants July 19 that key findings of the survey indicate that black Catholics express their faith with greater vitality, and 86 percent believe that integrating African-American religious expression into the liturgy is important.

Survey respondents also affirmed the desire by black Catholics to become more knowledgeable about the complexities of the Catholic faith as well as the church’s traditions and history, Pope-Davis said during his keynote presentation at the congress, which was held July 1921 in Indianapolis.

“Faith Engaged: Empower, Equip, Evangelize” was the theme for the congress, which focused on the discussion and approval of a pastoral plan for black Catholics as its main task.

More than 2,200 participants - including bishops, priests, deacons, men and women religious, laypeople and youths--represented dioceses from across the country.

“The energy has been very high here, which is a good thing,” Father Kenneth Taylor, pastor of Holy Angels Parish in Indianapolis and director of the archdiocesan Office of Multicultural Ministry, said during a break in the congress sessions July 20.

“We are issuing a national pastoral plan at the end of the congress, and we’re going to need a lot of energy, motivation and commitment to implement it,” the priest told The Criterion, Indianapolis archdiocesan newspaper.

Congress presentations began on a scholarly note with Pope-

Davis analyzing the results of among white Catholics by a avoid them because of their the extensive survey conductratio of 48.2 percent to 30.4 race. ed with Notre Dame professor percent, Pope-Davis said, but About one-fourth of the Darren Davis for the first time many black Catholics who go black Catholics surveyed also last year. Co-sponsors were the to church regularly are not regsaid fellow parishioners relucNational Black Catholic Conistered in a parish. tantly shake their hands, and gress office, the University of “One of the interesting things they have experienced racial Notre Dame president’s office -- and this may come as no surinsensitivity from their priest. and the university’s Institute prise to you -- is that one in four “This is a problem particularfor Church Life.

African-American Catholics ly given the centrality of priests There are significant “withand religious in the church,” perceive some form of racism in-group differences” among in their parish,” he said. “This Pope-Davis said. “If the shepAfrican-American Catholics, herd marginalizes people, what is a concern because our CathoPope-Davis should he expect from the comlic faith tells us that said, which A Local Note: we are one in the munity that he provides service reflect conDr. Geralyn C. Shelvin, a pa- body of Christ and to?” s i d e r a b l e rishioner of St. Paul the Apos- we express our faith Survey results can help imdiversity of tle Church in Lafayette and a as a community. prove the potential for growth experiences. member of the St. Paul Chapter in the church, he said. “Thirty“Yet, we know “This is #3 KPC Ladies of Grace Court, that in some of the six percent (of respondents) good news,” was honored to receive the first communities and are satisfied with the targeting he said of first Servant of Christ Award (Ser- some of our parof black vocations. We want the findings. vus Pro Christie) during the Na- ishes there is a perthat number to be closer to 80 “Prior to this tional Black Catholic Congress ception of segregapercent. ... Forty-five percent study, there XI. For more details, please tion,” Pope-Davis are satisfied with the promowere many see the article located on page said. “This becomes tion of racial integration in the people that 23 of this month’s Acadiana a problem, and this church.” thought our Catholic.

“All of the historical data that is a key finding that black Cathwe have found indicates that we think needs to olic community was in disarbe addressed and will be part of cultural identity ... is an imporray.” the pastoral plan.” tant part of who we are,” PopeThe survey found that “reliAsked about the scope of raDavis said. “We know that edugious engagement of blacks is cial inclusiveness in parishes, cation is a game-changer for us greater than among whites (59 he said, 31.5 percent of black in our society, particularly in percent to 35 percent),” PopeCatholics indicated that they this economy.”

Davis said. “By almost every are uncomfortable at church On a spiritual level, he said, measure of religious engagebecause they are one of the few “If Christ is the centerpiece of ment, African-American Cathpeople of color in their parish your existence, then how you olics are considered stronger and 25.9 percent of black Cathsee your faith will be informed in their faith than white Cathoolics think fellow parishioners by that foundation.” lics.”

He said “three distinct areas” Faithful Navigators make donation to ERE program of religious engagement were measured -- spirituality, emotionality and social interaction.

Black Catholics “have a history of using religious expression as a social and cultural way in which we engage in the community,” he said. “For many of us, going to Mass, participating in the sacraments and engaging in the life of the parish is also a social opportunity.

This is an important finding because for us our faith is not just a religious conviction. It is also a cultural nuance that helps us think of the world in a particuA group of Faithful Navigators of the Fourth Degree Assemblies of the Diocese recently lar way.” presented Bishop Michael Jarrell with a donation for the Excellence in Education (ERE) Program. Pictured above from left to right are: Mr. Glenn Ray (Faithful Navigator, SaOther important findings cred Heart of Jesus Assembly), Bishop Jarrell, Mr. Lee Allen Simon, (Diocesan Coordishow that weekly Mass attennator of the ERE Program, and Mr. David Landry (Faithful Navigator, Msgr. Gouaux Asdance is higher among Afrisembly. Also present but not pictured was Richard Yandle (Faithful Navigator, Bishop Maurice Schexnayder #1888 Assembly). Photo by Marian Bourque can-American Catholics than

Page 46 August 2012

Acadiana Catholic

At 100, society’s commitment to spread good news to blind remains same

by Beth Griffin Catholic News Service NEW YORK (CNS) Evangelists at a century-old missionary organization in New York spread the word of God without leaving their nondescript building in midtown Manhattan.

The people they evangelize never see the missioners, but they recognize the Light of the World in the materials they receive from the Xavier Society for the Blind.

The organization provides Catholic religious and spiritual material free of charge to more than 10,000 blind, visually impaired and physically restricted people throughout the United States.

Jesuit Father John R. Sheehan has been chairman of the Xavier Society since 2008. In an interview with Catholic News Service, he said Jesuit St. Francis Xavier, patron of the missions, encouraged his followers “to go forth to strange lands, learn to speak the language and tell the people about the word of God.” “That applies to the widest range of definitions. Language is not just vocabulary, it’s usage and structure,” he said.

For the Xavier Society, that means providing material in Braille, large print and audio formats. It’s a huge task -- literally: The Braille edition of the New American Bible fills 45 volumes and includes all the notes found in the print edition.

Father Sheehan said the Xavier Society was started by a group of laywomen who asked Jesuit Father Joseph Stadelman to help supply free religious materials to the blind. “In those days, if you wanted to get God’s word to the

Jesuit Father John Sheehan, chairman of the Xavier Society for the Blind, demonstrates how to read the Braille edition of the New American Bible at the organization’s offices in New York June 26.

The Xavier Society produces religious and spiritual material in Braille, large print and audio formats for people who are blind or visually impaired. CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz

Carmen Greico, the folk choir director at St. Bernard Church in Levittown, N.Y., reads the Braille edition of the readings for Sunday Masses in July at her home in Levittown June 29. The CD is produced and distributed by the Xavier Society for the Blind. CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz

blind, you either had to be a publishing house or you had to read to individual blind people,” he said.

The Xavier Society functioned as a publishing house “for prayer books, bits of Scripture and lives of the saints,” Father Sheehan said.

It founded and continues to manage the National Catholic Lending Library for the Blind.

The group began in 1900 in a single room at what is now Xavier High School and was incorporated in 1904. Early Bible texts used raised type called Moontype and New York Point, before Braille became the standard in 1918.

The Xavier Society has long relied on volunteers to help transcribe material into Braille and retype text using large-print typewriters. There are now more than 80 volunteers. Some are young actors and retirees who record books, Catholic periodicals and Mass propers for distribution via current technology.

Phonograph records gave way to reel-to-reel tape, which was replaced by cassette tape. Current subscribers also can use digital CDs and MP3 audio editions.

“What we do has not changed since 1900, but the technology and delivery systems have,” he said.

The Xavier Society is putting more emphasis on Braille texts as largeprint and audio subscribers are able to easily access material from other sources, or use computers to enlarge type or read content.

“No one else is doing what we do. People who use Braille have fewer avenues,” Father Sheehan

said, adding that Braille has the practical advantage of allowing users to both read and write.

Technological advances also now allow Braille users to read and write on devices similar to Kindles and Nooks.

The Xavier Society remains committed to its founding mission but is undergoing restructuring, as financial constraints and rapidly changing technologies prompted the board of trustees to look at how it can still meet the needs of current and future subscribers.

Father Sheehan reduced the paid staff from 16 to seven and is preparing to sell the society’s narrow seven-story building. “We’re not in a crisis, but we are moving before we are,” he said. A new headquarters location has not been chosen.

Proceeds from the sale of the building will be used to develop new ways to engage the blind and visually impaired, he said. Among the possibilities are retreats for the blind, outreach to younger users and translation of materials into Spanish.

“We’re maintaining a tradition,” Father Sheehan said. “We don’t charge for our service, we give it away.” Most of the society’s annual budget of $1.8 million comes from private donations and fundraising events, he said.

“The key word is evangelization, reaching out with information about our faith. The blind community needs to have access to this material, and opportunities are few and far between in the Catho-

lic Church. No one else is doing Catholic Braille and other groups charge for audio,” he said.

“The blind community tends to be on a lower economic scale, even with advanced training programs and education. The blind can do practically anything a sighted person can do, but sometimes it’s like they’re invisible” in the Catholic Church, Father Sheehan said.

He described his frustration while attending a Mass at St. Patrick’s cathedral for people with disabilities. There were accommodations for the deaf and people using wheelchairs, but none of the material was in Braille or large print. “The blind couldn’t participate actively in the service,” he said.

As a “first step to understand the culture” of the Xavier Society’s subscribers, Father Sheehan spent time at the Louisiana Center for the Blind, where he wore foam light-blocking sleep shades and learned to navigate with a white cane. He uses the glasses and cane on occasional walks through the streets of New York “to keep my skills up,” he said.

Father Sheehan joined the Society of Jesus in 1980, was ordained in 1992 and was a missioner in Nigeria and the South Pacific for 14 years. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, he worked in the theater and on Broadway before he entered the Jesuits.

The theater training comes in handy at the Xavier Society. Father Sheehan records books, including works by a fellow Jesuit, Father James Martin of America magazine. He also sings sacred music, Christmas carols and show tunes on a series of CDs sold to benefit the society.

Audio department manager Tom Dowd directs volunteer Jane McCormick Griffin during a recording session at the Xavier Society for the Blind in New York June 26. The Xavier Society produces religious and spiritual material in Braille, large-print and audio formats for people who are blind or visually impaired. CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz

Acadiana Catholic

August 2012 Page 47

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